Page 12 - Mega Bridal Issue

Through a Trust you can avoid the guardianship proceeding and
set up the terms of distribution to the minor or young child. Even
if you have a Trust, you still need a Will. The Will you have with a
Trust is called a pour-over Will and controls any assets that might
be outside of your Trust at your death; the Will “pours” the assets
into the Trust. It is also crucial to have an Advanced Health Care
Directive to dictate who will make health care decisions for you in
the event you cannot. To deal with any non-Trust assets, in the
event of your incapacity, a Power of Attorney is also established in
the estate planning process. In our practice, we have seen many
young families go through a death and, although it is not a pleasant
thing to think about, it is something you can plan for.

Planning your marital and nonmarital assets at the outset of your
marriage is also a good idea. Defining and agreeing upon what is
separate and what is community property assets can avoid prob-
lems down the road in the event of death or divorce. You can also
set forth what character future property will take after marriage,
such as income, earnings, retirement plans and other assets. In
California, separate property is defined as all assets owned or
acquired before marriage and property acquired during marriage
using separate property funds, gift, devise, or inheritance and
property that a spouse may have earned before marriage but actu-
ally received during the marriage. All other property in California
is community property. You and your spouse can discuss this in
advance and make all the determinations as to how you want your
current and future property to be classified. In the process of draft-
ing a premarital or postmarital agreement, each spouse must make
By Lori Bolander a full and fair disclosure of all the property and debts they have.
Bolander Law Group Premarital and postmarital agreements can take time to draft
YOU ARE because of all the information you must provide to each other and
your attorneys and also because of the full and fair disclosure of
assets. It is a good idea to start working on a premarital agreement
at least six months before the planned marriage date. California
12 law dictates that the premarital agreement must be presented to
GETTING the other spouse seven days before the marriage date, to ensure
your spouse has ample time to review the agreement and consult
counsel.

MARRIED! Bolander Law Group is an office of attorneys that specialize in trusts
and estates. With significant experience advising clients about and
drafting pre and post marital agreements, Bolander Law Group’s
attorneys would be happy to answer any questions you may have
SO WHAT’S YOUR PLAN? about your estate plan or a pre or post marital agreement.
Contact their office at 619 696 0667 for additional information.
Congratulations on your impending marriage! As you know, there
is a lot of planning involved in a wedding. However, while dealing
with venues, bakers, flowers, guest lists and bridesmaids, many
couples forget the most important planning they can do – estate
planning and planning for marital and nonmarital assets (premarital
agreements).

Planning for death or incapacity of you or your future spouse is not
something that people generally like to think about, especially at
such a happy time as a wedding, but it is crucial. Planning your es-
tate at the outset of your marriage will eliminate future procrastina-
tion of the task. If you or your future spouse own property, having
a Trust is essential to avoid a probate, in the event of a death, and a
conservatorship, in the event of incapacity. In California, if you own
property worth one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) or more,
a probate will be necessary. In 2012 that amount will be raised
to $150,000. For real property, the threshold is lower: $20,000
of real property (this amount will be raised to $50,000 in 2012). It
is important to note that this does not reference your equity in the
property, but the fair market value. Trusts are also necessary if you
have or plan to have children. Under California law, minors cannot
inherit and a guardian of their estate must be appointed to receive
any inheritance for them during the pendency of their minority.