Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in California
living trust settlement
My brother and I are cotrustees of trust which we are trying to settle. My father took all out of moms name but gave her a Life estate due to mental illness. Nothing was dispersed at his death. She has died and my brother now has seen 6 different attorneys because he trusts no one and each says something different concerning capital gains. I do not want to pay for his confusion. I want one attorney who can look at both the life estate and the dispersement. I want a neutral party doing the dispersement. Is this an attorney or CPA. What is the normal cost on a 1 milion dollar trust.
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: living trust settlement
I'd have to see the life estate specifically, but generally life estates get a full "step-up" in basis to the property's fair market value at death, meaning the best capital gains tax treatment possible.
Regarding disbursement, settlement fees are probably between 1 to 2 percent of the estate total value, not including the CPA's advice. What may help settle your brother's mind is a CPA or tax attorney getting a "private letter ruling" from the IRS on the issue so there won't be any confusion on the issue. And if your issue has already been settled with a tax case or private letter ruling, the attorney can let you know that too.
A good attorney should be able to show their reasoning so you can be fairly comfortable in settling the estate and not have surprises later.
Re: living trust settlement
these questions cannot be answered without reviewing the trust document, any deeds related to the life estate and obtaining full details of the assets and liabilities of the estate(s).
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