Estate Planning

Southern California Estate Planning Attorneys

The central objective of estate planning is to plan for the proverbial certainties of human existence - death and taxes. At Schmiesing Blied Stoddart & Mackey, our Orange County estate planning lawyers can't do anything about the inevitability of either, but we can do quite a lot to make sure that you and your family are well prepared for both. Contact us for a free consultation about our estate planning solutions for your family.

Most families will need at least the basic estate planning instruments: a will or trust, powers of attorney designating persons you can trust to make important financial and medical decisions on your behalf in the event of your incapacity, and advance medical directives to physicians (living wills) so that end-of-life treatment decisions will reflect your specific intentions.

For families with substantial assets, that could face state or federal estate taxes or inheritance taxes at the time of probate, our experienced wills and trusts attorneys will work closely with you in order to determine your potential tax exposure, your specific wealth preservation and transfer objectives, and the suitability of any one of many reliable estate planning and tax minimization strategies that can reduce or eliminate your estate tax liability.

Depending on your family's circumstances and objectives, our tax planning strategies might incorporate any of the following:

• Revocable living trusts that transfer title to particular assets out of your name and into trust, thus avoiding probate at the time of death, conservatorship in the event of your incapacity, and estate or inheritance tax liability
  
  
• Tax planning trusts of various kinds, each of which is designed to maximize the value of personal estate tax exemptions at the time of death. Examples of effective tax planning trust alternatives can include A/B trusts, generation-skipping transfer trusts, or even life insurance trusts, where the proceeds of the insurance policy pay estate tax liabilities
  
  
• Gifts and charitable trusts, such as gifts or bequests to tax-exempt organizations, charitable remainder trusts, or charitable lead annuity trusts
  
  
• Family business management succession planning, or formation of family partnerships or limited liability companies to hold assets

Our Orange County trusts and estates attorneys can also prepare special needs trusts to ensure the financial well-being of any children who might not be able to manage their own affairs due to disability. For additional information and a free consultation about our ability to help you address end-of-life and asset protection concerns, contact us at any of our three Southern California offices.

The Orange County estate planning and probate attorneys at Schmiesing Blied Stoddart & Mackey, LLP represent clients with wills and trusts, charitable trusts and gifts, probate and trust administration, business formation and transactions, real estate, and adoptions. Our Southern California probate administration lawyers serve clients in Orange County, Riverside County, Los Angeles County, San Bernardino County, San Diego County, Anaheim, Irvine, Fullerton, Newport Beach, Huntington Beach, Yorba Linda, Mission Viejo, Brea, Santa Ana, Costa Mesa, Palm Desert, Palm Springs, other Inland Empire communities, and the Coachella Valley.