Lowell Steiger's Los Angeles Law Blog

Estate Planning: Important to You and Your Loved Ones

 

Estate planning ensures that:

• Final property wishes are honored
• Health care issues are clarified and honored
• Loved ones are provided for in your absence

Estate planning resolves these (and other) legal questions when someone dies:

• State of their financial affairs
• Who gets what?
• Guardianship of minor children
• How much tax will need to be paid to transfer property
• Appropriate funeral arrangements

What An Estate Planning Attorney Does For You

We will help you plan your estate.  At the Law Offices of Lowell Steiger, we can advise you and then prepare, your legal documents:

• Wills
• Trusts
• Powers of Attorney
• Domestic Partnership Agreements
• All other estate related papers

Prior to doing so, we will meet with you to discuss and advise as to:

• Extent of your estate wishes
• Preparation of your properties and estate to make it easy on your loved ones to manage with little or no interruption from
• Government Agencies
• Courts
• Tedious Probate System
• Preparing estate against various tax issues that spring up during life and upon death

Protect Your Assets

Asset Protection: What is asset protection? Asset protection planning involves figuring out and applying a lawful series of techniques that protect your assets from claims of future creditors. The techniques are designed to deter potential creditors from going after you, and frustrate them if they do, generally by making it difficult or impossible for future creditors to grab hold of your assets or collect judgments against you.

In cases where significant sums are involved, asset protection planning often includes setting up a series of:

• Trusts
• Partnerships
• Off-Shore Entities
  

Contact me for more information.

Probate Probate is a court involved process that determines how property, owned by someone who has passed away, will be distributed to the proper beneficiaries or heirs. Avoiding Probate The probate process is tedious and complicated and can easily be avoided through proper estate planning and trusts. If Probate Is Unavoidable We Will Help You Probate An Estate If you or a family member needs assistance probating an estate or accessing a deceased person's financial affairs, we will help you here at the Law Office of Lowell Steiger. Call us now for a free consultation!

Finally, and most importantly, please contact me if you have any legal issues whatsoever.  If it's not something that my office ordinarily handles, I will be delighted to refer you to a well-qualified attorney who does. At the risk of repeating myself, I'm signing off with my warmest regards to you. Lowell Steiger Law Office of Lowell Steiger 8383 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 830 Beverly Hills, California 90211 Law Office of Lowell Steiger 323-852-1100 Contact Me By E-mail

Divorce: What Is Community Property? It's Mine, No It's Mine. Well, Which Is It?

    Community Property laws vary from state to state.  Does Community Property Law apply in your state? Well, here's the list: 

• California*
• Idaho
• Louisiana
• Nevada
• New Mexico
• Texas
• Washington
• Wisconsin

So, what then is Community Property? Simply defined, "Community Property" is all real and personal property, wherever situated, that has been acquired during marriage by a married person while domiciled in California* unless the property was his or her separate property.

    Wait! The word "unless" is in that definition.  Yes, the "unless" part is very important when dividing property upon the dissolution of marriage.  What, then, is "separate property?"  "Separate property" is all property of either spouse, owned before the marriage, or acquired after marriage by gift, inheritance, or descent, together with the rents, issues, and profits of such property.

    Here are some examples of separate property:

• Property one spouse owned before the marriage
• Gifts received by one spouse before or during the marriage
• Property acquired during the marriage in one spouse’s name and never used for the benefit of the other spouse of the marriage
• Inheritances received before or during the marriage
• Property that the spouses agree in writing is separate
• Property acquired by one spouse using separate property assets with the intention of keeping it separate, and
• Certain personal injury awards

Asset division is serious business and needs to be handled by an attorney.  What one spouse thinks is theirs may not be theirs!  For example, during the course of a 30 year marriage, Aunt Lettie left her entire $15 Million estate to her loving niece Jenny.  When Bob and Jenny decide to divorce, Bob is feeling pretty good because he's going to walk away with $7.5 Million!!!  Wrong Bob.  That inheritance is belongs to Jenny 100%.  This is separate property.

Feel free to consult my office if you're planning to get a divorce (or if you're in the throes of it now). Please note that Community Property v. Separate Property is just one of the complex issues in a marriage dissolution.  The issues of custody, child support, alimony, separation v. dissolution/divorce, restraining orders, retirement plans and/or tax consequences must also be addressed.

For a Free Consultation please contact Attorney Lowell Steiger immediately at

(323) 852-1100

lowell@steigerlaw.com

Skype (with or without video): Lowell_Steiger

"Treated With the Respect and Understanding That You Deserve"  

*Since my law practice is based in California, I'm addressing California law.  Your state's laws may vary so please consult an attorney for clarification of your state's law as it applies to you!