Law Offices of Deborah Ballins Schwarz

Estate planning involves the will, trusts, beneficiary designations, powers of appointment, property ownership (joint tenancy with rights of survivorship, tenancy in common, tenancy by the entirety), gift, and powers of attorney, specifically the durable financial power of attorney and the durable medical power of attorney.

Most jurisdictions use the term "guardianship" to refer to the same legal principle (in California, conservatorships are for adults and guardianships are for children). More often, and in all jurisdictions that have adopted the Uniform Probate Code, a conservator, who is granted control of the protected person's estate.

If a decedent had a properly drafted and funded trust, probate is generally not required. Unlike a will, a trust is a private document and need not be filed with the probate court. Nonetheless, the successor trustee must still take steps to administer the trust: Beneficiaries must be contacted and kept informed; the trust-maker's assets gathered ...

A special needs trust is created to ensure that beneficiaries who are disabled or mentally ill can enjoy the use of property which is intended to be held for their benefit. In addition to personal planning reasons for such a trust (the person may lack the mental capacity to handle their financial affairs) there may be fiscal advantages to the use of a trust.