Online resource center to help you explore these key issues, and others, regarding your estate.
Mr. Miller has many years of experience in designing and implementing a comprehensive variety of Trusts, Wills, and other estate planning documents, as well as settling estates in the most expedient and appropriate method. Further, he counsels and assists clients on becoming eligible for VA benefits and Medi-Cal.
Learn moreMr. Miller has been active in the area of VA Pension and Medi-Cal for well over a decade. He uses various specialized types of Trusts as well as non-trust strategies to gain eligibility for his clients and save the family money.
Learn moreMr. Miller has been settling estates (both simple and complex) for well over 40 years. The starting point is always to create a strategy to settle the estate in the most efficient manner possible with a minimum of taxes. Often times the strategy created allows the family to bypass Probate Court proceedings.
Learn moreMany of my younger readers are familiar with Facebook and other social networking sites. (Here’s our Facebook page. It can keep you abreast of the headlines for our blogs.) They are frequently warned about how their online presence could negatively impact their real life job prospects and relationships. As a result, many users try to … Read more
Choosing the people who will handle your affairs while you are seriously ill or when you are deceased is a deeply personal decision. You need to decide whom you trust to honor your wishes, determine what medical treatments you will or will not have, take care of your money and, possibly, your children. And you … Read more
Happy Valentine’s Day to you and your loved ones! Valentine’s Day was created to remind us to cherish our loved ones, and to spend a lot of money on cards, flowers, and stuffed animals. For our purposes, though, we will focus on the former. We are all familiar with the old grade-school rhyme: First Comes … Read more
In the ongoing effort to balance the state’s budget amid the economic downturn, the State of California decided late last year to cut Medi-Cal reimbursement rates by 10%. In the ongoing effort to preserve their fees, various professional organizations including the California Hospital Association sued. Last week U.S. District Judge Christina A. Snyder gave a … Read more
Nearly 49% of all marriages in the United States contained a remarried spouse and for the state of California it is believed to be even higher. It’s important that estate planning documents are updated and beneficiary designations on accounts such as annuities, life insurance policies and retirement plans are changed accordingly. If a person creates … Read more
With the troubled economic times we have faced, many people believe that estate planning will be unnecessary. The offer reasons, such as “My house is under water so there will be nothing left,” or “I don’t have an estate.” Especially savvy legal consumers might say, “My estate is worth less than $150,000 so no probate … Read more
One thing I’ve noticed over the years of practice is that most people for whom a living trust is appropriate know they probably need a living trust. They don’t always know why or what the purpose of the living trust is, but the word is out there enough that people have a pretty good idea … Read more
Making excuses to delay estate planning is easy. In fact, in my practice it’s a way of life for some people. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard people say: “I’ll worry about it later when things settle down more.” Or “I don’t have an estate, it’s too small to be affected.” Or … Read more
In 1978 California voters approved Proposition 13 to rein in property taxes that had doubled in 10 years. The measure was the inspiration for an anti-tax movement that has taken hold of the public discourse in Washington and in state legislatures throughout the country. Prop 13 caps the county real estate property tax at 1 … Read more
Forbes magazine had a recent article about Legal Zoom, an internet company that “targets the high-volume, low-cost business of providing basic consumer and business documents.” According to the article, the legal establishment is up in arms about it. This situation reminds me of an incident when I was just starting out as a lawyer (the … Read more
About Living Trusts is hosted by the Law Offices of Merwyn J. Miller, as your online resource center to help you explore these key issues, and others, regarding your estate.
Dear Mr. Miller: My mother is 82 and still lives alone. Over the last year, she has become noticeably more forgetful. She repeats stories, sometimes f...
Dear Mr. Miller: My mother passed away recently, and I have been named the Successor Trustee of her trust. I expected to be sad after losing her, but ...
Dear Mr. Miller: About ten years ago, my husband and I paid an attorney to create a Living Trust. We signed all the documents and put them in a safe p...
