Estate Planning and Probate Guidance for South San Francisco

Start with the decision you need to make

If you are planning for yourself, consider which decisions need to be addressed: who may manage financial matters if you cannot, who should make health-care decisions, and how your property should pass after death. A plan may coordinate wills, trusts, financial authority and health-care decisions; these documents address different concerns rather than serving as substitutes for one another.

If you are handling a death, begin with the available estate-planning documents and a picture of how assets are titled. Trust administration and formal probate depend on those documents and asset ownership, so the right path cannot be selected from a family relationship or a will alone.

Planning while you are alive

A useful starting point is to separate lifetime authority from after-death distribution. A financial power of attorney concerns financial authority; advance health-care directives and health-care powers of attorney concern health-care decisions. Wills and trusts address how property is directed, with their roles depending on the plan and the assets involved.

The related planning services include Advance Healthcare Directives and Living Wills, Healthcare Power of Attorney, Financial Power of Attorney, Wills, Pour-Over Wills, and Revocable Living Trusts. Other options listed by the firm include Asset Protection Trusts, Irrevocable Trusts, Charitable Trusts, Pet Trusts, Special Needs Trusts, Gift Tax Planning, and Business Succession Planning. These are distinct planning topics, not a checklist that every person must complete.

After a death: trust administration or probate

A trustee may administer assets held in a trust under its terms. Formal probate is a court process for a decedent’s estate. Which applies depends on the relevant documents and asset ownership; a will or trust document by itself does not establish how every asset will be handled.

For a matter connected to San Mateo County, the Superior Court’s Probate Division handles decedent estates and trusts. If a court matter is involved, consult the division’s current instructions for the applicable case rather than relying on an assumed courthouse assignment.

The related services are Trust Administration, Probate Administration, and Executor and Trustee Services. Ancillary Probate is also listed as a separate topic. The appropriate path depends on the particular documents, assets and circumstances.

Prepare for a remote consultation

Before meeting, gather whatever is available so the discussion can focus on the decision you face. You do not need to resolve every question in advance.

• For planning, note the decisions you want to address, such as financial authority, health-care decision-making, or distribution of property.
• For a matter after a death, collect existing wills, trust documents and other relevant estate-planning papers, along with a general list of assets and how each is titled.
• Write down what you know, what remains uncertain, and the questions you want to ask. If documents or ownership details are missing, identify that rather than guessing.

Choose a focused next step

You can use the consultation to clarify whether you are creating or updating a plan, administering a trust, or assessing whether probate may be involved. Bring the documents and questions that relate to that immediate need; additional planning topics can be considered separately.