On behalf of The Elder and Disability Law Firm, APC posted in estate administration & probate on Tuesday, September 4, 2018. Aretha Franklin died without a will or any sort of estate plan in place despite being worth an estimated $80 million at the time of her death. California residents may be able to learn something from the problems that this may create for her heirs. Her sons have listed themselves as interested parties to the estate and chose Franklin's niece to become the per...
On behalf of The Elder and Disability Law Firm, APC posted in social security disability on Friday, August 31, 2018. When Californians apply for Social Security disability benefits, they may wonder who is responsible for the outcome. After the necessary documents are filed, a claims representative from the Social Security Administration completes the application by obtaining medical information, dates of treatment and other details from the applicant. The representative will also t...
On behalf of The Elder and Disability Law Firm, APC posted in social security disability on Thursday, August 30, 2018. People in California who are applying for Social Security Disability benefits may wonder how to enhance their filing in order to maximize their chances of being approved earlier in the process. While it can be difficult to predict how an application will move forward, there are some steps that people can take to help the process proceed smoothly. First, making a cl...
On behalf of The Elder and Disability Law Firm, APC on Monday, August 27, 2018. Redlands residents who are doing their estate planning frequently encounter a dilemma. They may have one or more heirs who, over the years, has proven to be incapable of managing their own fiscal affairs responsibly.Sometimes this may be due to drug or alcohol abuse or a weakness for sports betting or the track, but other times it appears to be an inherent inability to make wise financial decisions. The...
On behalf of The Elder and Disability Law Firm, APC posted in social security disability on Friday, August 24, 2018. When Californians apply for disability benefits and are denied, they may wonder about their next steps forward. Some may want to file a new claim; however, it's generally better to file an appeal and move forward in the process. Approximately 65 percent of all disability claims are denied at the initial application stage. This means that one of the most important asp...
On behalf of The Elder and Disability Law Firm, APC posted in estate administration & probate on Monday, August 20, 2018. Digital assets, such are cryptocurrencies and online accounts, are one of the issues California residents have to consider when they are creating an estate plan. There are legal concerns that have to be addressed regarding financial accounts and other types of digital assets. It is always important for the executor of an estate to be aware of what type of assets...
On behalf of The Elder and Disability Law Firm, APC posted in social security disability on Thursday, August 16, 2018. California applicants for Social Security Disability benefits have the right to appeal a denial. The deadline for preparing an appeal is 60 days after the date on the denial letter from the agency plus five days for mailing time. Although this generally provides a person with sufficient time to prepare an appeal, certain events that prevented a timely appeal could ...
On behalf of The Elder and Disability Law Firm, APC posted in trusts & trust administration on Monday, August 13, 2018. The administrators of trusts in California have new tax codes to consider. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act becomes largely effective in 2018 and brings changes to tax deductions for trusts. As individuals have noticed, the tax reforms limit deductions for state and local taxes to $10,000. Because trusts calculate taxable income as if they were individuals, the deduction...
On behalf of The Elder and Disability Law Firm, APC posted in trusts & trust administration on Tuesday, August 7, 2018. People in California with significant estates may want to think about the future of estate taxation even after the major increase in the transfer tax exemption that was included in the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The law, which went into effect in 2018, doubled the exemption on transfer tax to $11.18 million per individual or $22.36 million per married couple. How...
On behalf of The Elder and Disability Law Firm, APC posted in trusts & trust administration on Monday, August 6, 2018. The significant changes to estate tax law that passed through broad tax legislation in 2017 mean that, at least for a while, only a small portion of the wealthiest families in the country would be subject to the estate tax. These changes, which raised the exemption level from $5.6 to $11.18 million per individual, are set to expire in 2025. Families that would bene...
