Wills and Trusts Lawyer Serving Los Angeles County and Orange County

If you own a home in Los Angeles County or Orange County and the deed is in your own name, your estate is headed for probate court unless you change that while you are alive. Fred Yadegar handles wills and trusts for families on both sides of the county line: building the plan, checking the one you already have, and going to the probate court when a fiduciary refuses to follow it.

The probate arithmetic

A will alone does not keep an estate out of court. Probate typically takes 9 to 18 months in Los Angeles County, and each of the attorney and the executor may claim a statutory fee measured against the gross estate: 4% on the first $100,000, then 3% on the next $100,000, 2% on the next $800,000, and 1% on the next $9 million (Prob. Code §10810). Gross means the mortgage is not subtracted. A house worth $800,000 with $500,000 still owed on it produces an attorney’s fee of $19,000, and the executor may claim the same amount. A funded revocable living trust avoids that proceeding for everything titled in it.

Three ways our office helps

Building the plan

A complete plan is a revocable living trust holding the house and the other titled assets, a pour-over will to sweep in whatever was left outside the trust, a durable power of attorney over finances, and an Advance Health Care Directive (Prob. Code §4600 et seq.). Fred drafts each document and handles the deed that moves the house into the trust. See how we build a plan.

Checking what you already signed

Plans fail quietly. The house was never deeded into the trust, a retirement account still names a former spouse, or a will was signed with one witness instead of the two the Probate Code requires (Prob. Code §6110). A review of your documents finds those problems while they can still be fixed.

Making the documents mean something

Trustees owe loyalty, impartiality, and prudent management (Prob. Code §16000–16015), and they must account to current beneficiaries at least once a year (§16062). When one will not, a petition under §17200 asks the court to compel an accounting, give instructions, or remove the trustee. Fred takes those petitions to court for beneficiaries and defends trustees who are doing the job properly.

When an estate can skip full probate

Some estates qualify for shortcuts. Personal property worth up to $208,850 can be collected by affidavit (Prob. Code §13100), and a decedent’s primary residence worth up to $750,000 can pass by a petition to determine succession (Prob. Code §13150 et seq.; AB 2016), both for deaths on or after April 1, 2025. Many Southern California homes exceed that limit, which is why the trust matters. If a relative has already died without a plan, start with the probate process for a home left without one.

Deadlines families do not expect

After a settlor dies, the trustee must send the notification required by Prob. Code §16061.7. A beneficiary then has 120 days, or 60 days after receiving the trust terms if that is later, to contest the trust (§16061.8). No-contest clauses are enforceable only in limited situations (§21311), so a threat written into the document is not always what it seems. Undue influence has a statutory definition (Welf. & Inst. Code §15610.70, adopted in Prob. Code §86), and a late change in favor of one person is examined against it.

Who you should be talking to

Fred Yadegar is a California attorney, State Bar #244184, licensed since 2006, and he prepares and litigates wills and trusts for clients throughout Los Angeles County and Orange County. He meets with you directly, asks about your family and property before recommending any document, and tells you what the work involves before it begins. Tell us what’s going on and we’ll explain your options and costs before you commit to anything.