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Ask The Expert
Mark S. Drobny recently served as the expert for The Sacramento Bee's "Ask the Expert" Column. He answered questions from readers regarding Wills, Trust and Probate matters on a daily basis. To read articles that have been published in The Sacramento Bee's Ask the Expert column, simply click on the article title.
- November 02, 2010 - Sacramento Bee Pet Trusts
- April 11, 2010 - Estate planning blunders and how to avoid 'em
- September 24, 2009 - Will or Living Trust- situation dictates what's best
- September 16, 2009 - When my kids inherit, they'll blow my life savings
- August 28, 2009 - Older homeowners can save on property tax
- August 19, 2009 - Self-employed can't set up retirement plans
- August 12, 2009 - War zone taxes, trust revisions spur questions
- August 5, 2009 - Caution critical on living trust, will modification
- July 22, 2009 - Do children have a right to inheritance
- July 8, 2009 - Could my estate start a legal battle like King of Pop's?
- July 1, 2009 - Can divorcing spouse split my inheritance?
- June 17, 2009 - Sister could start a messy inheritance fight
- May 27, 2009 - Estate lawyer's retirement may be a concern
- May 13, 2009 - Heirs not responsible for debts of relatives
Q & A
Q: Hello, I know you said before that the living trust should be prepared by an experience attorney. However, I told my friend that she should not buy a living trust software or fill in the blank form and do it by herself. My question is " If she decides to do it anyway, IS IT LEGAL ?" Will the living trust get thrown out and landed into court for probate if she does not hire a lawyer to do it? Thank you very much. Submitted by Henry from roseville
A: While it might be "legal", we won't know if it was done correctly until she dies and then it will be too late to fix it. There is a wealth of legal forms on the internet, in the library or on software packages. Most are "good in all 50 states" which may or may not be true, as there is a great difference in laws from state to state. Even a good form can be filled out incorrectly. To avoid Probate, a Trust must be properly funded: all real estate, securities, investments must be properly titled in the name of the Trust. We have a case right now where a decedent used a well known legal software. In Paragraph 7 she said, "I give everything in three (3) equal shares to my children", but in Paragraph 8 she said, "I give my house to my oldest child". So, didn't the house pass in three (3) equal shares to the children in Paragraph 7??? If your friend insists on doing what could be the most important legal document she will ever sign without an attorney's assistance and advice, at least make sure she buys an hour of an attorney's time to review it before she signs it. Answered at 10:15 AM on July 29, 2009, by Mark S. Drobny