In my practice as a Silicon Valley estate lawyer, one thing that surprises many of my clients is that Powers of Attorney are necessary even for married couples. People automatically assume that their spouse will be able to handle everything on their behalf if they become incapacitated. This is not usually the case. A Power […]

Santa Clara estate planning attorneys know, a divorce changes everything. If you are in the process of divorce or just finishing up, you are most likely busy trying to readjust to your new life. Although it’s a hectic time, it is important that you do not forget that you need to update your estate plan. […]

When most people think about estate planning, they picture money and property. But more and more people are adding intangible assets to their estate plan. Intangible assets might be things that have no monetary value but are nonetheless important to the family. They may include personal letters, a recorded family history, or digital assets such […]

San Francisco Bay Area will and trust attorney Gary Brainin asks, “Are you planning for your children’s future?” Picture this: you get an opportunity to spend some alone time with your spouse. What do you do to prepare for date night? You carefully select a babysitter. Then, you write detailed instructions: when to feed the […]

Santa Clara Special Needs Lawyer: Special Needs Trusts Protect Government Benefits and MUCH More! Unfortunately, many parents of children with special needs wait until their child turns 18 to consider creating a Special Needs Trust. Sometimes, they even wait until their child eventually needs government benefits like SSI or Medi-Cal. However, Special Needs Trusts do […]

The number of adult children caring for their elderly parents is growing at a very fast pace. If you are a baby boomer and not already caring for an elderly parent, chances are high that you might be facing this situation soon. It isn’t always easy to know when, or how, to step in to […]

As an elder care lawyer in Santa Clara, I work with families to prepare for any number of situations in the estate planning process. One circumstance that is especially relevant to elder care law is dementia. Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia are almost exclusively conditions which appear late in life. Along with the […]

Unless you were living under a rock, you most likely heard about the tax reform bill that was passed by Congress and signed by the President over the holidays. One big change that came out of it was the doubling of the exemption amount for federal estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer taxes. Beginning in 2018, […]

Like many Americans, your home is probably your largest asset. However, if you have children who have grown and moved away, you’re left with an empty nest, quiet and big. You may be torn between keeping the house and passing it to your children someday or selling it. On the one hand, it may be […]

As a Santa Clara County probate lawyer, I am well aware of the hassles and headaches that families face when a loved one’s estate goes into probate. The process can drag out, eating up not just time but also resources that would have otherwise gone to beneficiaries. Appointed executors find themselves with burdensome responsibilities that […]