The
lawyers of HARTOG & ASSOCIATES, INC. are sensitive
to a client's bereavement and his or her progress through the
grief process. We seek to always keep in mind the client's recent
loss of a friend or family member when providing professional
advice.
Probate and Trust administration is a challenging task. Complex
problems arising from the interplay among the will or trust
instrument, the probate code, and tax laws must be resolved
by the trustee and the trustee’s professional advisors.
The death of the deceased spouse often requites the executor
or trustee to create order out of uncertainty and ambiguity.
The surviving spouse may consider much of the information required
to be obtained as an unacceptable invasion of privacy. Unfortunately,
the requirements of law and common sense compel obtaining this
information.
In trust administration the typical nonprofessional trustee
may be the surviving spouse, an adult child, a relative or family
friend--someone other than an attorney or an accountant (or
other professional) who specializes in estate planning and trust
administration. Almost all nonprofessional trustees hire an
attorney, usually but not necessarily the attorney who drafted
the trust instrument, to assist with the trust administration
process. When a California married couple together has established
a family revocable living trust, the trust administration process
begins upon the death of the first spouse to die. The typical
living trust estate plan for a prosperous California married
couple provides for the division of the family revocable living
trust into several subtrusts upon the death of the first spouse.
After the death of the deceased spouse, the revocable living
trust instrument typically calls for the establishment of three
subtrusts: the Survivor's Trust, the Bypass Trust, and the Marital
Deduction Trust. The Survivor's Trust will contain the surviving
Settlor’s half of the community property, as well as any
separate property owned by the surviving spouse. The Survivor's
Trust remains entirely revocable by the surviving spouse, and
the survivor retains unrestricted control over the property
in that trust. The Bypass Trust is intended to be funded with
the applicable exclusion amount, the amount that the deceased
settlor may transfer without incurring estate or gift tax. The
Bypass Trust will not be taxed on the death of the surviving
spouse. The Marital Deduction Trust is intended to qualify for
the unlimited marital deduction from estate taxes. This Trust
is often called a “QTIP” Trust. Choosing which assets
to use to fund the several subtrusts is one of the major challenges
faced by the nonprofessional trustee.
Our primary professional responsibilities regarding probate
administration are to assist the client in terminating the decedent's
affairs; to supervise the identification, collection, and distribution
of the decedent's estate; and to see that all legal obligations
of the estate are met. We accompany the client through the court
process imposed by a probate administration until the process
is completed.
Estate Tax Return Checklist/Questionnaire
Download PDF (Note:
this is a fill-able form that only
can be printed NOT saved)
Delegation of Fiduciary Power Under the California Prudent Investor
Act
-John A. Hartog
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Fiduciary
Delegation of Investment Power Under the California Prudent
Investor Act
-John A. Hartog
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PDF
A
Trustee's Crime and Punishment: Managing Fiduciary Liability
Under the California Prudent Investor Act
-John A. Hartog
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Treading
the Tightrope
-John A. Hartog
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PDF
What
to Do with a Trustee Who Doesn't "get It"
-John A. Hartog
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PDF
Assisting
the Nonprofessional Trustee in Implementing the Administrative
Trust
-John A. Hartog
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Ins
and Outs of the Administrative Trust
-John A. Hartog
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As
the Trust World Turns
-John A. Hartog
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PDF
The
Other Taxes: Property & Transfer Taxes: An Introduction
for the Trust and Estate Lawyer
-John A. Hartog
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PDF
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