Estate Planning and Probate for Los Angeles Residents

First identify the decision in front of you

If you are planning ahead, the focus is how to express your wishes and arrange authority for financial and health-care decisions. If someone has died, the first question is how the relevant documents and ownership of assets affect the work that follows. A will, trust, financial authority and health-care instructions may serve different purposes; one does not answer every question.

Trust administration and formal probate are not interchangeable labels. Which process may apply depends on the documents and how assets are owned. Gather that information before choosing a path rather than assuming that having a will or trust settles the question.

• Planning while alive: clarify who should make decisions and what wishes should guide them.
• After a death: identify the documents, the people named to act, and how each asset is titled.
• If the path is unclear: bring the available records and describe what has happened so far.

Planning ahead: choose documents for your circumstances

A planning discussion can coordinate a will or trust with financial authority and health-care decisions. Consider what you want to happen if you cannot manage a financial matter or communicate a health-care preference, and who you trust to act in those situations. Your choices should fit together rather than being treated as a collection of unrelated forms.

A will and a trust raise different planning questions. For example, ask what property is covered by each document and whether your existing asset arrangements match your intentions. A trust alone does not establish that every asset is held or handled as intended. Discuss the practical effect of your existing documents and ownership records before deciding whether changes are appropriate.

After a death: distinguish trust administration from probate

If you are helping with an estate, collect the will and any trust documents, information about assets and their ownership, and the names of people identified to act. Those facts help frame whether trust administration, formal probate, or another question needs attention. Do not assume that a document’s title alone determines the process.

For Los Angeles County matters that may involve probate, the Stanley Mosk Courthouse probate directory separates probate filing, probate records and wills services, and also describes probate-note procedures. A directory listing is a resource, not a determination of the correct courthouse for every county resident; the appropriate location should be checked against the circumstances.

Organize your options by the work you need

The firm’s estate-planning and probate services cover several distinct needs. The available service areas include:

• Planning documents and decision-making: Wills; Pour-Over Wills; Revocable Living Trusts; Advance Healthcare Directives and Living Wills; Healthcare Power of Attorney; Financial Power of Attorney.
• Trust types and planning goals: Asset Protection Trusts; Irrevocable Trusts; Special Needs Trusts; Pet Trusts; Charitable Trusts; Gift Tax Planning; Business Succession Planning.
• Work after a death: Trust Administration; Probate Administration; Ancillary Probate; Executor and Trustee Services.

Prepare for a remote consultation

Before meeting, make a simple inventory of the question you want answered and what you already know. If planning ahead, note your priorities, the people you are considering for decision-making roles, and any existing documents. If a death has occurred, gather available wills or trust papers, a list of known assets and how they are titled, and information about anyone named to act.

You do not need to resolve every question before speaking. Flag missing records, uncertainty about ownership, or conflicting documents so the discussion can focus on what needs clarification. Codi M. Dada Law Office P.C. has one in-person office at 802 Grant Ave, Novato, CA 94945, and provides virtual services statewide.