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Avoid Probate and Preserve Your Legacy for Those You Love

If you own even a modest home, you probably need an Estate Plan.  Let us help you plan ahead, both for you own sake and for the sake of those you love.

Protecting and Securing your Legacy

Your best gift, both to yourself and to your loved ones, is to plan ahead so that you can protect your legacy no matter what the future brings.

As Estate Plan is really much like a life insurance plan or a health insurance plan-you may not think you need it now, but what if something unexpected should happen to you or your spouse?  Like life and health insurance, if you don't have it before you need it, you can't get it.

If you own a house with any substantial amount of equity, and especially if you have children, you probably need an Estate Plan, and we will craft one for you.

Prepare an Estate Plan Which Truly Protects Your Legacy

Many people think that they have an "Estate Plan" if they have a Will.  Not true!

Although it is better to have a Will than not, an "Estate Plan" should actually consist of several other documents.  If you have only a Will, your property will have to go through a Probate proceeding in the Court.  Your heirs could be tied up in the probate proceeding for months, your assets will become public, and a significant percentage of your estate could be paid out for attorneys' fees and Court costs.  Moreover, your home might not lose some of its value because of the longer delay and higher expense and risk which are associated with the sale of a home in a probate proceeding. 

And what if you should be in a severe accident or suffer a severe illness and become incapacitated?  If you haven't prepared the proper documents, it may take a different sort of Court proceeding to appoint someone to handle your affairs and make medical decisions for you, which will waste your assets and may lead to other losses.

When you hire us to prepare a true Estate Plan, we will provide you documents to address all of these issues and more.  Our basic Estate Plan includes the following documents, all specifically drafted to achieve your particular needs and goals:

A Revocable Living Trust which appoints a "successor" Trustee to gather your assets, pay your bills, transfer the property to your loved ones in the manner you designate, and appoints guardians for your minor children.

A "Pour Over" Will which provides that anything which was not transferred into your Revocable Living Trust is "poured over" into your Revocable Living Trust.

A Durable Power of Attorney which designates who is to take care of your affairs in the even that you become incapacitated.

An Advanced Health Care Directive which designates someone to make medical decisions for you if you become incapacitated. 

A General Assignment of Personal Property which transfers property which does not have a formal "title," such as jewelry, collections and household furniture, to your Revocable Living Trust;

A Trust Transfer Deed to transfer your primary residence into the Trust;
 
A Certification of Trust which you can provide to financial institutions and other entities to ensure that your bank accounts, stocks, bonds and other important assets are "funded" into the trust;

A Portfolio in which to keep your original Estate Plan and copies of other important documents, such as your recorded Trust Transfer Deed; and

A detailed List of Funding and Followup Instructions to ensure that you know what you have to do to  ensure that 1) substantially all of your assets are "funded" into your Revocable Living Trust, 2) you do not make common mistakes such as transferring your IRA to your Trust or naming your IRA as beneficiary of your trust when better alternatives are available.

If your situation requires more advanced planning, we can also prepared more sophisticated Estate Planning documents, including Special Needs Trusts, Life Insurance Trusts, Charitable Remainder Trusts, and Qualfied Personal Residence Trusts, Grantor Retained Annuity Trusts, which are appropriate for your particular situation.

We can also review your interests in LLC's, corporations and other businesses to ensure that these valuable assets are properly transferred.

Review and Revise Your Estate Plan
As your life changes, so should your estate plan.  If you already have an Estate Plan and there has been a change in your financial situation, marital status, number of children, philanthropic interests, general lifestyle, or if it's been more than three years since you have had your Estate Plan prepared, you should contact us to see if you need a new or modified estate plan.

Contact Us
For estate planning services in San Jose and throughout California, call the Law Offices of John M. Daley at 408.286.0200 or contact us online to schedule a free initial consultation.

111 North Market Street, Suite 300
San Jose, CA 95113

P: _408-286-0200
F: 408-418-4612