Author: Probate Attorney

California Probate law requires that each time a petition is filed in the probate court pertaining to probate and trust matters, that persons who are entitled to notice receive notice by mail or by another allowable method of service. It is important to serve the notice of hearing because all interested persons are entitled to file an objection, and let the Probate Court know their view of why the petition should not be granted. But more importantly, if no notice is given, this gives rise to a later Motion to Set Aside the Order pertaining to that petition.

To talk to us about Notice of Hearing issues in probate and trusts, please call Mina Sirkin, probate and trust attorney in Los Angeles at 818.340.4479. Email us at [email protected].

When you are in the middle of probate administration, there are many connected businesses which provide service to probate executors and administrators in Los Angeles. Here is a list of common types of connected providers in this area:

1. Probate attorneys.
2. Probate Real Estate Brokers.
3. Probate Auctioneers.
4. Personal Property Disposal Services.
5. Appraisers.
6. Probate Referees.
7. Estate Lenders.
8. Claim services.
9. Estate Accountants.
10. Professional Executors/ Administrators/Trustees licensed by the State of California.

In the area of estate service in Los Angeles, there are a variety of connected business entities that you can come across in any given case. Ask us to refer you to the right providers in our County. Call probate attorney, Mina Sirkin for a referral. 818.340.4479

Whether a conservator can take action in a particular area of one’s life depends on many factors. Duties v. Rights: While there are certain duties that are assigned to a court-appointed conservator, there are certain actions that the conservator may be able to take but that the conservator is not required to take.

For example, the court can authorize the conservator to hire a property management company. The court expects that the conservator will act professionally, but the court will not second guess the conservator’s rights to select the company. If the conservator fails to hire a management company and that was an order of the court, then the court can look into whether or not the conservator has cause damage to the estate by failing to act.

It is not simple to remove or replace a conservator, once appointed. There is often no good cause to remove the person. The court does reserve the right to remove the conservator for failing to account to the court. Even so, the court gives deadlines and continuances if the conservator needs more time to file an accounting in Los Angeles.

Rights are broader than duties. Duties of the conservator are set forth in the California Probate Code 2257, 2468, and 2351 et sec.

Call attorney Mina Sirkin to discuss rights and duties of a Los Angeles Conservator. 818.340.4479

When you are looking to help your parent but are undecided about going forward with the method to assist your mother or father, you should consider a list of a few things:

• Does your parent need formal help?
• Will your parent do better with informal help?
• How will your parent feel if you sold his or her house?
• Has a geriatric care manager examined your parent to determine if there are easier options than conservatorships?
• Is your parent competent to sign a power of attorney?
• If you obtain a power of attorney from a parent, will your siblings engage in a rebellion against you?
• What are the costs of going forward with a conservatorship in Los Angeles?
• If you start a conservatorship, will you be able to keep diligent records of your parents’ assets, income and expenses?

Talk to us in Los Angeles, Burbank, Glendale and Woodland Hills about the options and choices in a conservatorship case, and about informal assistance to your parents. Call 818.340.4479 or Email us for a free consultation appointment at [email protected].

When do you know it is time to help your parent?

1. Your parent has missed paying bills.
2. The house is in bad shape and appears messy.
3. There is no fresh food in the refrigerator.
4. Your parent appears malnourished.
5. Medication appears not to have been renewed.
6. Other people are befriending your parent.
7. Your parent has given away his/her money or has been a victim of a scam.

How to know when your elderly parents need help?

Getting help for elderly help comes in different flavors. There is part-time help, full-time help, informal help, and formal help. All of the above have different methods and require much thought before you act. When your parent can no longer care for his/her medical decisions, basic life arrangments, and finances, it is time to get help. All areas do not need to be affected before you seek help. There are groups of people who can help, such as lawyers for elderly, geriatric care managers, assisted living facility staff member, as well as physicians and psychologists.

What to do when elderly parents refuse help?

Getting a geriatric care manager can greatly ease the burden by having a professional talk to your parents. Most people want to maintain their independence. A skilled geriatric care manager can help them achieve this goal.

How to help elderly parents from a distance?

With help from the appropriate elder care attorney, you can arrange for geriatric services as well as legal services for your parents, even if you are not in the area. We are skilled lawyers in putting you in touch with the right experts who can ease the burden of distance for you.

How to convince parents to go to assisted living?

You first have to determine what the least restrictive alternative is for your parents. A nurse or geriatric care manager can give you several options that are available for your elderly parents care. There are ranges of housing options for elderly which need to be examined carefully, along with their estimated costs.

How to deal with irrational elderly parents?

Your parents or parent may become irrational in his/her thinking at some point. You must separate emotions from rational thinking to be able to plan better for their needs. An elderly LCSW or social worker can visit the home and write down a plan of action for you and your parents. Sometimes, psychiatric assistance may be needed to medicate a person who is belligerent.

Are your aging parents in denial?

It is common when parents are in denial about the level of care needed for them. After all, no one wants to believe they are old or infirm. Take small steps to preserve their independence to allow them to make decisions by themselves while being safe.

When is it time to put your parents in a nursing home?

When you have ran out of all other housing options, then it may be time to think about a nursing home. Have you truly explored the location, level of care, and costs? Do you need help in figuring these out? We are here to help you find the right legal solution for your parents and their housing.

What to do when elderly parent refuses to move?

When your parent refuses to move, you should find out details of their rationale, feelings and finances to determine the source of fear in the move. Offer to assist in packing them, or paying for packing. If the house is in hoarding condition, you can get companies that specialize in these types of cases to review the costs with you. Get a geriatric care manager to tell you how much care your parents need and then evaluate all options with a conservatorship attorney.

It is time to see if your parent needs a legal method to receive help. Call us for your legal questions about conservatorships and elder care in Los Angeles. 818.340.4479

When you are thinking of succession planning, your plan must include a transition in the event of your incapacity. Not only will you need to think of death, but you must also be prepared for pre-incapacity transition and post-incapacity transition of your business.

Business planning comes via many avenues listed below:

1. Trustee steps into your shoes following your resignation, but before you are incapacitated.
2. Your business documents, partnership agreements, buy-sell agreements, your power of attorney and your trust must all coordinate with each other to allow the right person to act for you.
3. You and your partners or shareholders must discuss who will operate the business in the event of your incapacity, and how the incapacitated partner or shareholder will be compensated if he or she is no longer working in the business.

Who will be in charge of your business when you are incapacitated?

Here are your choices:

1. Your business partner.
2. Your spouse;
3. Your child/ children;
4. Your agent under a power of attorney;
5. Your trustee.
6. A professional fiduciary.
7. A court-appointed conservator.

Will a Conservator be the right choice to run your business?

A conservator is bonded and court-supervised. A professional conservator will report to the court in an accounting which can be viewed by all of your family members and your business partner. A bond protects your estate from the actions of the conservator in Los Angeles.

Each of the choices above has different procedures, risks and costs. While some are less formal, the less formal the arrangement, the riskier the arrangement is, where there is no bond for the person acting for you. Family members often have their own agenda. For example, your spouse may be interested more in payment of her current expenses as opposed to acting in a way that benefits the business as a whole. He or she may also not have the tools or business training to make your business thrive. Your children may be influenced by their spouses, and may have internal conflicts to deal with when it comes to their siblings.

Talking about succession planning and fiduciaries such as conservators with a Los Angeles attorney can help draw a picture of the future for you and allow you to best plan for it.

Call Mina Sirkin, Succession Planning attorney representing fiduciaries, trustees and business people in incapacity planning in Los Angeles. Call 818,-340.4479. Email: [email protected].

Many situations involve an elderly person who has become so incapacitated that he or she cannot care for himself or herself, but where family members are just not the right choice as conservator. There are times when an attorney representing a professional conservator can help locate and introduce you to a professional fiduciary who can stop the family fights and care for the elderly.

Professional Fiduciaries are licensed individuals who can act as conservators, trustees, executors and also informally by reviewing the case to see if they can appropriately protect the elderly trust or estate.

How do you know when a family member is not the right choice as a conservator?

a) There is no family.

b) Family members have their own financial agenda.

c) Family members cannot agree on basic decisions regarding a parent, disabled or an elderly member’s life.

d) Your lawyer or attorney says they cannot help you and has referred you to get a professional conservator.

Call conservatorship attorney Mina Sirkin who represents professional conservators, non-professional conservators, and professional fiduciaries in Los Angeles. We can help you select a conservator. Call 818.340.4479

There are some important court tips repeated by probate judges to consider when you are in the Los Angeles Probate Court. Whether you are from Los Angeles or if you are from out-of-state, there are some nuances that you should know about when you have a case in the Los Angeles Probate Court system.

1. You need to know which probate department you are going to ahead of time. Look at the paperwork you have received, such as the Notice of Hearing. The Notice of Hearing tells you where to do, when and place which is called the department number. Because there are ten probate departments in Los Angeles, you need to know which floor to go to. Here is a list of the Probate Departments and the floor of the Los Angeles Superior Court that contains them as of 10/27/2019. These are located in the Stanley Mosk Los Angeles Superior Court at 111 N. Hill St., Los Angeles CA 90012.

Los Angeles Probate Departments

See a complete list of probate judges here:

Department 2D: Sixth Floor (6th Floor): Judge Gus May

Department S09: Long Cause Probate is now in Long Beach as of Feb. 2024): Judge Ana Maria Luna

Department 4: Second Floor (2nd Floor): Judge Brenda Penny

Department 5: Second Floor (2nd Floor): Judge Jessica Uzcategui

Department 9: Second Floor (2nd Floor): Judge Ruben Garcia

Department 11: Second Floor (2nd Floor): Judge Jonathan Rosenthal

Department 29: Second Floor (2nd Floor): Judge Lee Bogdanoff

Department 62: Judge Stephanie C. Santoro

Department 67: Sixth Floor (6th Floor): Judge Daniel Juarez

Department 79: Sixth Floor (6th Floor): Judge Lynn Scuduto

Department 99: Commissioner Mark S. Priver

You need to know the name of your Probate Judge in Los Angeles. Probate judges sometimes rotate in Los Angeles. But if you know your case number, you can look up your probate notes here a couple of days before your probate hearing and get your probate judge’s name,

Here is the link to the probate notes where you can locate your judge’s name at the top of the notes: http://www.lacourt.org/ProbateNotes/ui/main.aspx

Get your case number from the Notice of Hearing or other court documents which you have received before you look up the probate notes above.

How to dress to the Los Angeles Probate Court departments?

Dress code is office attire in the probate departments. You should consider wearing a suit jacket. Judges evaluate the parties in many ways. The way you appear tells the judge many things about you.

How to talk to the Los Angeles Probate Judges?

You should address the probate judge as your honor. Be respectful and take turns when you speak. The best way to impress your judge is to be prepared. Review the paperwork and be prepared to answer questions by the judge. You must review the Probate Notes before you go to court. It is helpful if you print the probate notes and bring them to court with you.

What is a call number in probate court?

No, a call number is not the phone number. In front of each department door in the probate court, each morning, the Clerk of the Probate Judge posts the probate calendar. On the calendar next to the case name, there is a four-digit call number, which tells you the order in which the case will be called by the court. Usually, cases that have a call number in a 1000 call number are heard at 8:30a. The cases that start with a 3000 call number are heard at 10:00 am and cases that begin with a 4000 call number start at 10:30a.

When should you be present in the court-room in the Los Angeles Probate Departments?

You should arrive at least 30 minutes before your hearing calendar time to acclimate yourself with the area. Restrooms are available at each side of the second floor and sixth floor of the probate department floors. If you are going to be late, call the probate department judicial assistant before your hearing starts and let her or him know.

Where to park if you are going to the Los Angeles Probate Court?

Parking is not easy nor cheap near the Los Angeles Court. Arrive 1 hour before your hearing to get parking. The average price of parking within two blocks of the Court is between $17-$20. There is a parking lot on 1st Street at the corner of Hill Street which charges $18. There are also parking lots on Hill Street between 1st and 2nd Streets. More parking is available at Broadway just south of 2nd Street. Parking north of the Los Angeles Probate Court can be purchased at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels on Temple Street and Hill Street for $20.00. The Music Center on Grand also offers parking to visitors of the Stanley Mosk Court. You can also Uber/Lyft to the Courthouse from other places. There is a Metro Station directly across the Court if you prefer not to drive to the Court.

Phone Numbers to the Los Angeles Probate Departments:

Once you know your probate department’s number at the Stanley Mosk Court, you can find the phone numbers here.

http://www.lacourt.org/courthouse/courtrooms/la

Who to call when you need representation in the Probate Court:

Call Probate Attorney Mina Sirkin at 818.340.4479 or 800.300.9977. Email us at [email protected] for an appointment about probate in the Los Angeles County Court system. We offer online consultations the same day.

When you are a new parent, you don’t think of your parents’ estate plan. You are too busy taking care of your young ones. When you are old parents, you don’t think of your own incapacity or demise but are focused on enjoying your family, and your grandchildren. Sometimes, things go wrong and parents and children are in a frenzy to take care of legal affairs.

The best time to take care of your legal affairs in estate planning requires speaking to an experienced Los Angeles attorney to guide your estate and plan for your future. How will long term care be paid for you or your parents? Who will be in charge of day to day medical decisions and who is best suited to make financial decisions. These are all questions that you must think about before you go to a lawyer for estate planning.

Incapacity can become very costly if you are not prepared. As much as many people hate to pay for long term care insurance, it is one of the best ways to protect yourself and your family from major nursing home costs.

As a young mother or father, you should carry at the minimum, enough life insurance to cover enough to last for yearly expenses, plus expected college expenses of your kids. If your spouse or life partner does not work, you should carry more insurance. Talk to an estate attorney and a life insurance agent to get the numbers right and to make good beneficiary designation decisions.

At Sirkin Law Group, PC estate attorneys, we can help you plan for your young kids and your elderly parents. Call us at 818.340.4479 or email us at [email protected] for more estate planning information.

When looking for experienced counsel to assist you with your questions about probates and estates or trusts, Sirkin Law Group’s proficient attorney lawyers are here to assist you to get prompt and efficient advice in all probate and estates areas.

Woodland Hills Expert Lawyer in Probates and Estates

Why you should get a lawyer in Woodland Hills?

1. When you consult with a lawyer, what you and the lawyer discuss is confidential.
2. When you use a non-lawyer to prepare a trust or handle your estates or probate, nothing you say to that person is privileged and no attorney-client confidentiality exists with non-lawyers.
3. If you are a beneficiary whose needs are to discuss the actions of an executor of an estate or inaction or action of a trustee, you must have confidentiality to be able to litigate.
4. When asking for accountings and litigation involving a contest of a trust, you are able to discuss things with your lawyer that you are not able to tell a non-attorney. Obtaining account data is easy for a lawyer because lawyers have subpoena powers.
5. Malpractice insurance protects the client. Non-lawyers do not carry errors or omissions insurance so you are left without any protection when you go to a non-lawyer to do legal work in estates and probates.

Why select our estate attorneys for your probates?

Our estate attorneys have over 27 years of experience helping the Los Angeles community in distributing estate assets. We have a Board Certified Specialist in Probate law to help ease your mind and guide you in Los Angeles Probate. Call our Woodland Hills staff lawyers: Woodland Hills 818.340.4479 for probate advice. #woodlandhills #Woodland #Hills #lawyer #woodlandhillsca #ca #attorney #lawoffice #lawfirm #probatesandestates #ca #Woodland #Hills @Woodland Hills