Joint accounts—the most confusing asset in the estate planning word. Especially joint bank accounts. They start off relatively harmless with a parent naming one of their children as a joint account holder to help pay bills and manage finances. But rather than add a child only as an agent over the account (which would expire
"joint tenancy"
The Empty Will: Why a California Will or Trust May Not Control Your Assets after Death.
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You may think that a California Will or Trust controls the distribution of all your assets after your death. You may be surprised to learn just how meaningless a Will or Trust can be depending on how your assets are titled.
When a person is alive, his assets are viewed as belonging to him. When…
The Asset Puzzle – Why Your California Will May Not Matter.
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Posted in Will Creation
The manner in which assets are titled govern how those assets pass at death. And this can override a disposition contained in a Will or Trust. All the effort people take to prepare a Will or Trust can be wasted if assets are not titled properly. This is what I call the asset puzzle.
The…