Insights
Our blogs and videos are designed to give you valuable insight into estate planning, probate, asset protection, and more. Read our attorneys’ latest updates and stay informed.
FAQs
Why do I need a California Probate Attorney?
The California Probate Court administers estates upon someone’s death. If you don’t have an estate plan the Probate is a process you will have to endure. It is stressful, really confusing, the courts are backed up and delays are inevitable. The primary reason you would hire a probate attorney that is certified in California is to ensure you are doing everything you can to navigate through the probate process efficiently. The team at NM Law Attorneys are excellent in either estate administration or can navigate through conflict should there be a need for probate litigation. Discuss your matter with our team today and get take the right steps to work through Probate. Contact us HERE
Learn how to avoid California probate HERE
Learn how to avoid probate on a bank account HERE
What role does the beneficiary play when someone passes away?
Have you been listed as a beneficiary of a loved one’s estate? The death of a loved one must be really tough and we are sorry for your loss. It is important to understand your role as a beneficiary during these times and how to work through:
- Probate court should there not be an estate plan
- Liaison parameters with trustees and other beneficiaries
- Estate administration
- Possible family conflict
What is the role of a trustee in an estate plan upon someone’s death?
The primary role of a trustee is to ensure that the terms of the trust are carried out according to the estate plan.
- Have you been appointed a trustee of an estate?
- Were you aware of it or did you just find out?
- Are you finding it hard to understand how to navigate matters?
- Is there conflict with family members and you seem to be caught unsure of what decisions to make?
We have a team of compassionate attorneys who advocate for trustees.
Contact us HERE
What If there is no will?
What if there is no will and you are in dealing with California Probate?
If there is no will, the estate will have to go through the probate process as it would with a will. However, two significant differences apply to the probate administration process when there is no will.
- First, the probate court will appoint an administrator as the first step. The court may appoint a family member, but the court can appoint any person other than a family member. The person selected for distributing the estate’s assets may not have been the decedent’s choice.
- Second, the distribution of the assets will be determined by what is called the intestate law because the decedent has named no heirs. This means that the assets may be distributed to persons that would not have been chosen to receive them. The heirs are determined by Law of Succession. The court will require proof of the identification of the heirs that would be covered by the law before any distributions making any distribution of assets. The list of heirs covered under the law is extensive, which means that the court will reach to extended family members.
Who would inherit the assets under the intestate laws?
If the decedent was married or had a registered domestic partner, the court will need to understand what assets are community assets, or marital assets, and which assets are held solely by the decedent. If assets are held jointly or with rights of survivorship, then the transfer to the surviving spouse or the registered domestic partner is automatic.
The Law of Succession, which controls asset distribution when there is no will, stipulates that community, or certain marital assets, will go directly to the registered domestic partner or spouse if the decedent did not have children or close relatives. The law prevents the separate assets from being given in total to the registered partner or spouse. If there is not a registered domestic partner or spouse, the law specifies an order of distribution of all separate assets among any children and certain close relatives.
A surviving spouse with children will inherit all of the community assets and 1/2 or 1/3 of the decedent’s separate assets, and the children will inherit 1/2 or 1/3 of the separate assets. The spouse will inherit all of the community property and 1/2 of the separate assets with the remaining 1/2 passing to the decedent’s parents if there are no children.
Testimonials
Vey helpful with good insight to take the proper steps with difficult situations and have my questions answered. Noelle and her team are professional and courteous and great to work with!
Samantha and the team are professional compassionate and get the job done. She articulates very well what needs to be done. Her and the firm do Probate and Trust at its finest to protect their clients. She is a valuable asset for me to source out to my clients as a strategic referral partner. Protecting family asset is essential and I recommend Samantha and her team for all your probate and trust needs.
I was referred to NM Law after dealing with a myriad of problems in settling a complicated Trust in Riverside County. At the initial meeting, Noelle Minto and Samantha Smith listened to the mess I was in and answered the questions I had. They provided me with information regarding my duties as a Trustee, made me aware of important dates that were upcoming, important dates already missed, and devised a plan to settle the Trust while protecting me, personally. When I left the first meeting, I felt that I was in good hands.John Schroeder was brought on to work on my case with Samantha and they updated/collaborated with Noelle. Noelle, Samantha and John are all patient, direct and very personable. Their knowledge and professionalism are exceptional. NM Law was successful in achieving a Settlement Agreement under difficult circumstances amongst people with little trust in one another. Thankfully we did not have to bear the cost of going to trial, however, I have complete confidence that NM Law would have prevailed if we had.I highly recommend NM Law. I look forward to working with them again, but this time to plan my estate.
Love this firm. I’ve worked on a wide range of legal issues with NM law, and the attorneys here are top notch, reasonably priced, and a pleasure to work with. They truly care about each of their clients and they made me feel confident each step of the way. Truly professional. They resolved a range of issues with me through strong legal counsel and I will continue to work with them for years to come.
Ms. Minto,I want to thank you and your staff for the courtesy extended to us during our family's pending emergency deadline.Mr. O'Grady spoke to my brother and gave us his best recommendation regarding my father's estate.It is really hard to speak, and even harder to "plan" generational wealth with a parent in terms of assets, intentions, and mortality, but it is a necessary conversation to have, if only to lessen the unfairness of life that eventually catches up to all of us.Our family tried to bring justice to my father's death within this probate process and found no justice, this system must be changed, so that a fairness is inherit within this system and not just a scam—lots of hard lessons to be learned from a broken probate process.In either case, thank you again for giving our family the attention and direction we sought. The adage is true, not all lawyers are the same. Looking forward to working with your office in the near future, as we don't want to repeat this experience with our Mom.Gracias,Abraham
NM Law is an excellent law firm to work with! Noelle and her team are very thorough and knowledgeable. They explained the estate planning process to us and kept us informed every step of the way.We highly recommend NM Law for your estate planning needs.
I have worked with many attorneys, and there are very few that I would ever recommend. Noelle and her team have gone above and beyond to help all of our clients that we have referred to her. There is no one else that I would recommend for estate planning in the area.
I was first referred to Noelle Minto by my family law attorney Mike Monarch to provide oversight on my husband’s Trust conforming with our Post Marital Agreement. Her outstanding legal insights helped me to feel secure that both documents were in alignment. These interactions caused me to hire Noelle Minto to create a restatement of my own trust (1999) to be more relevant and reflect my current financial portfolio. Her professional guidance was outstanding. Noelle was always available, friendly, insightful, and mindful of my needs. I would even say highly intuitive. She certainly expanded my knowledge of wealth distribution. I also valued the Law firm’s entire team. Edward was delightful to work with as well. I highly recommend Noelle Minto and her knowledgeable legal team for their exceptional legal services on Family and individual Trusts. I will be making referrals to my friends in the future.
Noelle and Samantha and their team are amazing. They are extremely knowledgeable and professional (they are the best). They have and continue to support me and my family while dealing with my parents Will and Trust. Samantha is very patience with all my questions.I highly recommend NM Law.
My wife and I went to Noelle to update our 36 year old family trust. Since our trust was so old she rewrote our trust and wills in their entirety. We have a large family with kids, daughters-in-laws, and 13 grandkids. So it was a complex task. She spent plenty of time with us making sure every detail was exactly the way we wanted, and had some good ideas that we liked. And her assistant, Tatiana, was very helpful. Noelle did an excellent job and we are very pleased and confident that we now have everything in proper order.
Charities We Support
We dedicate pro bono time, volunteer services, and a percentage of our gross revenue to these organizations. In 2023, we sponsored a refugee family of five to come to the United States and start a new life.
Each year our law firm decides as a group which charities to assist with our time, money, and expertise. Please feel free to click on any of the charities below and make a donation of your own.