Estate Planning in California

A fundamental rule of trust administration is to follow the terms of the trust. The applicable law states "on acceptance of the trust, the trustee has a duty to administer the trust according to the trust instrument and, except to the extent the trust...

A blended family, i.e. one or both of the spouses have children from a prior relationship, is a variable that is periodically found in trust disputes. One spouse will naturally want to benefit their children to the exclusion of their step-children and...

A fundamental rule of court proceedings is to attend the court hearing, whether in-person, virtually or by phone. The consequences of missing a court hearing without a justifiable reason include the court dismissing your case.
A recent unpublished appellate opinion centered on a litigant who missed multiple court hearings and then had his case dismissed, then appealed the dismissal....

When a party files a petition in probate court seeking redress of injury, e.g. breach of trust, the clerk will schedule a time for the initial hearing. For instance, if the petition is filed on July 27, 2021, the clerk might hypothetically assign a hearing...