Wills and Trust Attorney Orange County, CA
Secure your children’s future. Our Wills and Trusts Attorney Orange County legal service is here to handle the drafting and full preparation of your documents.
If you are looking for an experienced Orange County Trust Attorney, the attorneys at Masson & Fatini are here to help. We can advise you on the difference between a trust and will, and help you decide which, if not both should be prepared. Our estate planning attorneys can handle the drafting and full preparation of your documents, including both simple or complex wills or trusts. We can additionally provide advice on your responsibilities if you have been selected as an Administrator or Trustee. If you have any questions or need assistance with any of these, please feel free to contact our Orange County office. Our qualified trust attorneys and staff can assist you with all the information you may need about wills and trust.
The Difference Between Wills and Trusts
You most likely have heard the term “will” and “trust” but may not know what those terms mean or the difference between a trust and will. Both terms are an aspect of estate planning. A “will” and a “trust” serve two different purposes but work side by side in a completed estate plan created by estate planning attorneys. A will takes effect only after you die while a trust begins to function after its creation.
If you were to ask 100 average people about the difference between a will and a trust, you’d likely to get 100 different answers. Even sophisticated people with experience in matters of estates and probate are likely to be unclear about many of the details on how these legal concepts work. When you add the factor that each state has different estate laws and also consider the federal regulations, there are easily thousands of pages of tax details. Your attempts to seek clarity on these matters may prove to be as difficult as selecting an engineering crew for the next moon mission.
Wills and trusts boil down to a couple of basic legal principles which have thankfully remained relatively unchanged for centuries. Property rights survive human lifespans. The state has a legal obligation to protect those property rights, either by law or by providing individuals and businesses the option to create legal structures to do so. The last will and testament has been the traditional instrument used to sustain property rights in probate. With more complex assets and ownership structures, the trust has arisen as the instrument of choice for many estates – especially those with many beneficiaries.
Understanding Wills and Trusts in California Law
Like the now indispensable limited liability company (LLC.), the trust combines the benefits of a last will and testament with the “separate but identical” characteristics of a corporate entity. It essentially turns a will into a full-fledged legal “person” with the authority to own property, obligate itself legally and do many things that a simple executor cannot. Where an estate is a list of property and liabilities, a trust is a legal “person” with the authority to perpetuate the wishes of the decedent and his or her estate both before and after their death.
Each type of estate planning by a wills and trust lawyer in Orange County has its own tax ramifications. Each also has its own advantages and disadvantages in regard to questions of trusts administration, cost, the proper disposition of property, documentation requirements, government filing requirements and various other administrative details. As an Orange County legal expert, we understand that getting these details right is a key responsibility. We can’t afford to get them wrong because your family’s legacy is at stake, and so is the legal protection of the estate’s beneficiaries.
If a will is amended improperly, not only can it invalidate the amendment, it could also invalidate the entire will. If property is meant to be transferred to a trust and the process is not carried out correctly, it could create a situation where that property must go through probate while the rest of the trust does not. Does it sound like a medium-sized nightmare yet? Consider the tax issues. Then consider the legal expenses involved in hiring a wills and trust attorney to unravel it all. You don’t want to go through that, and neither do we. Our job is to zealously protect your relative’s estate and your family’s best interests. You will find that protection to be vital.
Ultimately, legal work is a process of education. Learning about your rights and how you are protected under the law is one of the things an Orange County estate planning attorney takes very seriously, because we take our clients lives and property seriously. If you require the preparation of a will or trust, make sure you have the right advocates on your side.
Top Rated Estate Planning Lawyers in Orange County, California
Why use an estate planning attorney in Orange County for legal service to prepare your Will and Trust?
California law requires that you follow certain steps to properly execute your will. The failure to do so can result in the Court invalidating the will in its entirety. Even small changes to your will – if not handled properly – can invalidate the entire document.
If a Trust is not properly prepared it can be contested as defective and/or for failure to follow statutory requirements. Additionally, if assets are not transferred properly into a Trust, it may require the property to be transferred through probate potentially invalidating the benefits of the trust. An experienced Orange County trust attorney and estate planning lawyer can help you avoid these costly and irreversible mistakes. We have extensive experience in all aspects of the creation, modification, and implementation of both Wills and Trusts. You can ask our reliable estate planning attorneys about California Estate Planning Law.
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