Firmar un testamento simple

Que es un Testamento?

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¿Qué es un testamento?

Un testamento es un documento sencillo que contiene sus instrucciones sobre qué hacer después de su fallecimiento. Un testamento establece:

Quién se encargará de los asuntos administrativos posteriores a su muerte. Esta persona es su albacea designado.
Quién recibirá sus bienes después de su fallecimiento. Esta persona o personas son sus beneficiarios.

Estos dos conceptos son los aspectos más importantes de un testamento. Sin embargo, existen otras secciones importantes.

¿Debería hacer un testamento?

Eso depende de sus bienes actuales y del valor estimado de sus bienes en el futuro. Hay muchos otros factores a considerar, ya que un testamento simple funciona para algunos, mientras que para otros solo resultará en un proceso de sucesión testamentaria que en Ingles se conoce como Probate.

Solicite una consulta legal

Si está considerando hacer un testamento, le recomendamos que pida una consulta legal para determinar si un testamento es adecuado para usted. Otra herramienta común es un fideicomiso revocable en vida que in Ingles se llama un Revocable Living Trust. Llame o envíe un correo electrónico para solicitar una consulta.

Sign a Will

What is a Will?

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What is a Will?

A Will is a simple document containing your instructions about what do following your death. A Will states:

  • Who is in charge of post-death administrative matters following your death. This person is your nominated Executor.
  • Who gets what what assets following your death. This person or persons are your beneficiaries.

These two concepts are the most important aspect of a Will. However, there are several more important sections that make up a Will.

Should you make a Will?

That depends on your current assets and the estimated value of your assets in the future. There are many, many other facts to discuss as a simple Will works for some while it will only result in Probate for others.

Request a Legal Consultation

If you are exploring creating a Will, you are greatly encouraged to hold a legal consultation to determine whether a Will is right for you. Alternatively, another common tool is a Revocable Living Trust. Call or email in to request a consultation.

¿Cuál es la diferencia entre un testamento y un fideicomiso?

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A menudo me hacen esta pregunta: ¿Cuál es la diferencia entre un testamento y un fideicomiso?

Pensé que sería útil aclarar esta pregunta. En resumen:

  • Un testamento es un documento breve que establece quién recibe qué bienes después de su fallecimiento.
  • Un fideicomiso es un documento extenso que establece quién recibe qué bienes después de su incapacidad mental o fallecimiento.
  • Generalmente, se recomienda un testamento para personas con menos de $208,850.00 en bienes (a partir de 2026).
  • A menudo se recomienda un fideicomiso para quienes poseen más bienes que esta cantidad. Por lo tanto, si usted es propietario de una vivienda o terreno, normalmente se recomienda que tenga un fideicomiso.
  • Un testamento se utiliza el momento de su fallecimiento.
  • Un fideicomiso se utiliza inmediatamente después de firmarlo y sigue siendo válido después de su fallecimiento.
  • Un testamento requiere la firma de dos testigos.
  • Un fideicomiso debe ser notariado.
  • Un testamento es un documento que puede guardar una vez firmado.
  • Un fideicomiso requiere algunos pasos adicionales una vez firmado. Es necesario “vincular” sus bienes al fideicomiso. Esto es fundamental para que el fideicomiso funcione correctamente tras su fallecimiento.
  • Un testamento puede resultar en que su familia o beneficiarios tengan que acudir a los tribunales (proceso sucesorio, Probate) para reclamar la herencia.
  • Un fideicomiso, si está bien redactado y vinculado a sus bienes, debería evitar el proceso sucesorio de Probate, de modo que su familia o beneficiarios no tengan que acudir a los tribunales para reclamar la herencia.

Tenga en cuenta que la información anterior es muy general y solo tiene fines informativos. No es una descripción completa y no se aplica a todas las personas. Solicite una consulta personalizada en mi oficina para determinar qué documento se adapta mejor a sus necesidades y objetivos.  Cada persona es diferente, cada familia es diferente, cada patrimonio es diferente y cada objetivo es diferente. Se recomienda un testamento o fideicomiso personalizado.

Llame, envíe un correo electrónico o utilice el formulario de contacto: Contáctenos.
Reciba una consulta sobre testamentos o fideicomisos con una abogada con experiencia en planificación patrimonial en el condado de San Diego.

 

What’s the Difference Between a Will and a Trust?

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I am often asked this question: What is the difference between a Will and a Trust?

I figured I would shed some light on that question. Simply put: 

  • A Will is a short document stating who receives what assets following your death. 
  • A Trust is a long document stating who receives what assets following your mental incapacity or death. 
  • A Will is usually recommended for persons with less than $208,850.00 in assets (as of 2026).
  • A Trust is often recommended for those with more assets than  this amount. Therefore, if you’re a homeowner, it is typically recommended for you to have a trust. 
  • A Will becomes usable at the time of your death. 
  • A Trust becomes usable immediately after signing it and continues being usable following your death. 
  • A Will is witnessed by two persons. 
  • A Trust is notarized. 
  • A Will is a document that you can set aside once it is signed. 
  • A Trust requires a few action steps once it is signed. It requires you to “connect” your assets to your trust. This is critical in order for the Trust to work correctly upon your death. 
  • A Will can result in your family or beneficiaries needing to step into a courtroom (Probate) to claim the inheritance. 
  • A Trust, when carefully crafted and connected to your assets, should be able to avoid Probate so that your family or beneficiaries skip the courtroom when claiming the inheritance. 

Keep in mind that the above information is incredibly general and for informational purposes only. It is not a complete set of statements and will not apply to all persons. Receive a custom consultation from my office to best determine which document is best for your needs and goals. 

Call in, email in, or use the provided contact form: Contact Us.
Receive a consultation about the topic of a Will or a Trust from an experienced estate planning attorney in San Diego County.

 

Living Trust for Spanish Speakers; ¡Hablo Espanol! I Speak Spanish!

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¡Hablo Espanol! I Speak Spanish!

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What is a Contingent Beneficiary and Why Is That Important to Me?

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In short, a Contingent Beneficiary is a person who will receive a benefit under a Will or Trust subject to a condition or event occurring.

I am in the process of assisting another San Diego family prepare their Estate Plan. A husband and wife team happily married for 25+ years with two children are planning what to do with their North Park home in the event of their deaths. In this case they want the house to transfer to their two adult children in the event of their death. But, what happens in the not-so-random case where mom, dad, son and daughter are all on a family trip when a tragedy occurs and all of them die? This is where a Remote Contingent Beneficiary or Contingent Beneficiary steps in. The person, persons, group or charity identified as a Contingent Beneficiary (or in this case a Remote Contingent Beneficiary) in the Will or Trust steps in to receive the house if the son and daughter cannot receive the house due to their deaths.  The purpose of identifying a Contingent Beneficiary in a legal document such as a Will or Trust is to leave a back-up plan. No one wants to consider such possible tragic scenario like a plane crashing with all family members within, or a boat capsizing with all family members on it. However, back-up plans including Remote Contingent Beneficiaries are important for that specific reason – we never know what will happen in our future.

Take a look at your Will or Revocable Living Trust. Does it identify a Remote Contingent Beneficiary? Do you know who you’re listing as a back-up beneficiary to take your assets (your house, cars and money) in the event your primary beneficiaries predecease you? You have worked very hard to pay off that house mortgage and car loan. Now take the next step and plan properly while you’re in good mental health and have the mental capacity to plan these things yourself.

Some families leave a friend or distant family member. Other families list their grandchildren or extended family. Others elect a charitable organization or favorite group. Consider your options and leave this in writing. If it’s not part of your Will or Trust, it won’t do anyone any good to simply think about your wishes.  This is a good time to also have your Trust reviewed by a professional if you chose to prepare a Will or Trust using a self-help method. An improperly prepared Will or Trust is not valid in the State of California and you don’t want to leave such document to chance.

 

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Celebrate Mother’s Day With the Kids (Sunday, May 8th) & Then Set Time Aside Time to Make Arrangements for the Children

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As families prepare to celebrate Mom this Mother’s Day on Sunday, May 8th, children and significant others prepare to make this 1 day extra special for her. This day usually showers Mom with flowers, a dining experience, gifts and other memorable moments for the whole family to remember. The point of this day is for Mom’s to feel extra special, but Mom’s can also take this day as a reminder of things to arrange for their family’s future.

Regardless of whether you have been a Mom for 1 year or 21 years, you and your children will feel even more love between yourselves when you let them know that you have planned for their future with estate planning arrangements. Estate planning arrangements offer answers to the following questions:

  1. Who will care for the kids in Mom’s long term absence or death?
  2. Will the kids be left under the parental guidance of their natural father upon Mom’s death?
  3. Are there any savings accounts reserved for supporting the kids upon Mom’s hospitalization, incapacity or death?
  4. Are there any life insurance policies Mom set up?
  5. Who will handle the children’s financial, healthcare and educational future if Mom cannot do it?
  6. If Mom passes away, what items (including houses) do the children split and when?
  7. If Mom owns a business and suffers an accident, who carries on the business?

Estate planning answers many other questions that are dependent upon the family structure. This is even more important where there are circumstances involving adopted children, step children, blended families, disputes among family members and so on.

Therefore, enjoy Mother’s Day this coming Sunday. Hug your children like never before on this day and then focus on how you can show them your love even more through estate planning.  Calendar a reminder to yourself as a Mom to plan for your children’s future through Wills, Trusts, Financial Planning and other methods.

 

5 Great Ways to Find the Best Wills & Trusts Attorneys in San Diego

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When your San Diego-based family finds itself in need of a qualified estate planning attorney it can become a daunting task. There are so many attorneys out there advertising both offline and online claiming experience in wills, trusts and estate planning. So how do you find qualified and experienced wills, trusts, and estate planning attorneys in San Diego? Here are a few pointers to consider when you are searching for the best wills, trusts and estate planning attorneys in San Diego to take on your estate planning tasks.

  1. Request Recommendations from Your Friends and Family – start off by inquiring within your network. Ask your friends and family members for recommendations. You’ll learn about how others have used an estate planning attorney in the past and what to expect in involving an estate planning attorney.  Friends and family will look out for you and will recommend only those that provide quality service.
  2. Read Available Reviews – After receiving recommendations, search their online profiles. Read available reviews to learn how other non-family members have been helped by these particular attorneys. Use local San Diego resources such as community-based sites or your local Chamber of Commerce, and national resources such as Avvo.com, Justia.com, Yelp.com, FindLaw.com. You can also simply perform a Google search for the attorney’s name to learn more about that person and/or law firm.
  3. Industry Recommendations – Use available resources such as the San Diego County Bar or the State Bar of California to learn more about your potential attorney. Search online and call around with inquiries as well.  Again, sites like Avvo.com (a legal database of attorney) will help shed more light on your search.  Here’s an example of an attorney’s profile on Avvo.com
  4. Referral Requests from Trusted Parties – Use trusted professionals to seek out recommendations.  For example, if you have worked with a Realtor in the past, that Realtor is typically part of a group of professionals and just may know a great attorney to refer you to. It also gives you a great opportunity to follow up with your group of trusted professionals.
  5. Consultations – When seeking legal consultations, attorneys in San Diego often offer free consultations depending on your particular legal needs. Take advantage of those free consultations and request more than 1, especially if you really want to obtain a second opinion.  In attending at least 2 consultations, you just may find that 1 attorney fully understands you or is simply a better fit for you than the other.

These recommendations are based on an accumulation of feedback from clients over time. Most expressed that taking their time to find a quality attorney is more cost-effective in the long-run than simply electing the first search result using an online search engine. I hope this helps you locate the best wills, trusts and estate planning attorneys in San Diego.  Feel free to reach out to this office to request a consultation after reviewing our client feedback.

Your family legacy is important. Be sure to take the time to locate the representation that’s right for you, your family and your posterity.

Yours, mine & ours = Family. But who raises the kids if somethings happens to us?

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The phrase “yours, mine and ours” usually refers to the bringing together of children from two different families and growing the family with additional children. Essentially the end result is a household with a number of kids from different relationships. Usual circumstances include those where each spouse has children from previous relationships or marriages and then the newly formed couple have more children.  With these types of family structures, there are usually 2, 3, 4 or even more adults considering themselves parents to a set of kids.

Here’s an example: Sarah (age 21) marries Sam (age 21). They have Sammy Jr. soon after marriage. Sarah remarries five years later to Dave who has a three year old (Davy Jr,) from a previous marriage, and Sam remarries five years later to Diana who go on to have their own kids. Dave and Sarah, now your next door neighbors, care for Sammy Jr. (now age 5), Davy Jr., and together they have their own child Savannah (age 1). In this example, if your neighbors Dave and Sarah jointly pass away in a car accident a year later, who cares for baby Sammy Jr. , baby Davy Jr., and baby Savannah? It’s not a riddle. It’s a common occurrence!

In this scenario, the answer depends on written agreements between Sarah, Dave, Sam and Diana. That is of course assuming there is some sort of agreement. If nothing is in writing, the State of California will default answers for you concerning the care of your children.  Now, let’s add a few variables to this potentially realistic hypothetical. What if Sam and Diana suffer severe marital problems? What if Dave’s parents are elderly with medical problems too strong to handle children in the household? What if all of them want financial and physical custody of the kids?

I think you’re getting the idea. Preparing guardian nominations through a Will or a Revocable Living Trust is important for Sarah, Dave, Sam and Diana. Everyone has to be on the same page to ensure the well-being of everyone’s kids. Through proper guardianship nominations as part of your estate planning, you could avoid these future uncertainties once you pass away.

Parents, more than anyone else should hold discussions about guardianship nomination and discuss document planning soon after having their children. However,  other persons may also be interested in having the parents leave their desired plans in writing. Parents’ siblings, the parents’ parents (the two sets of grandparents), the parents’ friends and sometimes even the parents’ neighbors should all have this conversation with the parents to make sure there is proper planning set.

As a reminder, in estate planning, nominations for guardianship are set. However, those nominated may or may not wind up being the best fit for the children. Without any nominations, the California system will determine the welfare and future of the kids.

If you’re a soon-to-be parent of if you are already parents, start your planning now, not later. If you’re in a situation where your  household kids are comprised of “yours, mine & ours,” you are greatly encouraged to start these discussions. Here are a few factors that affect the family planning:

  • who the natural parents are
  • whether any children are adopted legally by the new step parent
  • step parent situations
  • parents with credit problems
  • parents with criminal histories
  • many more variables affect the nomination planning
  • physical custody and financial custody of the kids
  • parties that may be interested in caring for your kids