Estate Planning
Respected, Experienced Estate Planning Lawyers
At Allen & Allen, L.L.P., we have been planning estates for our clients for a combined 40 years.
We work with you as a team. We take the time to sit down and get a comprehensive picture of your financial and personal circumstances. You tell us your goals, and we advise you of the law. Together, we construct a plan that best fits your needs.
The Tools of Estate Planning
These are some common legal instruments that we employ to accomplish your estate planning goals:
- Trusts: Used to avoid probate proceedings, minimize estate taxes, and accommodate numerous situations.
- Wills: These are legally binding documents that tell the probate judge how your assets are to be distributed.
- Durable power of attorney: You name a loved one as your agent to act in your absence or incapacity regarding all financial matters.
- Advance health care directives: You state your wishes regarding medical treatment, and name an agent to see to their fulfillment.
- Titling of assets: You can title assets in your name, or in your trust's name. This gives us flexibility in estate planning.
Family Living Trusts and Marital trusts
Many of our clients have chosen to set up family living trusts. Family trusts address what should happen if you and/or your spouse die. The trust is set up in advance to receive the estate assets, which would then be used by your chosen trustee to provide for your children's or other loved ones needs in the way that you choose. If you fund your trust durring your livetimes it acts as a vehicle to avoid a potentiall costly probate court proceeding.
Marital trusts address two tax rules that affect sizeable estates: first, assets passing from one spouse to another pass tax free; second, each individual estate enjoys a substantial exclusion. We draft marital trusts to take maximum advantage of these two laws, resulting in substantial tax savings.
Experience and Knowledge Are Key
It takes years of study and practice to master the intricacies of estate planning and estate tax law. We at Allen & Allen, L.L.P., have the knowledge and experience to prepare estate plans that will meet your particular needs.
We invite you to contact us, so that we can discuss these matters in the context of your personal circumstances.
Allen & Allen, L.L.P.
240 Westgate Drive
Suite 241
Watsonville, CA 95076-2453
Phone: 831-768-7215 • Fax: 831-722-0347 • E-mail
