Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in California

Re: sole heir of trust or will

If a person dies intestate (without a will), the court does need to go through a number of procedures to ascertain who is the heir. If you are the sole heir, they would still need to do a proper search to verify this. This is what "ascertaining" is referring to.

With regards to a trust, this passes outside of probate, so whoever is listed as the beneficiary would receive the estate. If there is someone else who might have a claim to your Mother's estate, they can challenge the trust. However, if you really are the sole heir, there should be no difficulties or "extra steps". Wills are a little more complicated since they must go through probate, but generally the answer is the same.

Re: sole heir of trust or will

I get to trot out my latin - and this is only true in WA I am not licensed in CA. Perhaps a CA atty will pick this up and provide their answer for you.

Nemo est haeres viventis.

Translated: No one is the heir of a living person. Living people do not have heirs, dead persons do. It is not possible to ascertain who your mother's heirs are if she is alive.

Elizabeth Powell

Re: sole heir of trust or will

No. But, she should probably use a living trust and other death and disability planning documents. Whether she can do this on her own or need attorney assistance has to do primarily with the nature and extent of her assets. Most people with a net worth of less than one million dollars ($1MM) can. My book, "Create Your Legacy & Save the American Middle Class. How You Can Protect Your Family and Loved Ones in the Event of Death or Disability (Without Paying Legal Fees) and Win their Gratitude and Admiration" explains all you need to know in simple, plain English. You can go to www.yourlivinglegacy.info for more information on this and obtain a download of the book. If you do decide its best to handle all of this without a lawyer, I offer on lin my Legacy Trust Package which includes a complete planning package, in simple English and valid in every State. The book is $19.95. The do it yourself trust package if you choose to use it is only $79.95.