San Jose & Santa Clara County Probate & Trust Real Estate Specialists

Kathleen Daniels, Real Estate Broker Realtor®
Need Probate Help - Probate Real Estate Services
San Jose & Santa Clara County, California
Call 408-972-1822 or Email
  • Probate
    • California Intestate Succession
    • Cost of Probate in California
    • How Long Does Probate Take In California?
    • Independent Administration of Estates Act
    • Investor’s Opportunities in Real Estate
    • Probate Process
    • Probate Timeline
    • Probate Sale California
    • Probate Sale Process
    • Probate FAQ
    • Glossary
  • Executor
    • How Does an Executor Sell a House [Process, Duties, Time-frame]
    • Screening Buyers – Why Sellers Want Buyers With Underwriter’s Approval [Video]
    • Submitting Offers on Probate Homes for Sale
    • Selling a Probate Home | What Executors Need to Know
    • The Power of Underwriting Approvals [Video]
    • Direct Mortgage Lender [Video]
  • Beneficiaries
    • California Inheritance Tax [Video]
    • Relative Living in Inherited House [Video]
    • Is A Trial Necessary For An Eviction? [Video]
    • What is the Process for a Sheriff Eviction in California [Video]
    • Laws for Quicker Evictions [Video]
    • Tenant Protection Laws [Video]
    • California Partition [Video]
    • Home Loan Approvals [Video]
    • Lender Approvals With HOA [Video]
  • Conservatorship
    • California Conservatorships [Video]
    • Conservatorship vs. Trust [Video]
    • Create a California Conservatorship [Video]
    • Difficulties of a Conservatorship [Video]
  • Trusts
    • California Probate Code 850
    • California Trust Administration Checklist
    • Fiduciary Duties of a Successor Trustee
    • Income Tax Issue with Trusts [Video]
    • Irrevocable Trusts [Video]
    • Modifying an Irrevocable Trust – Ca Probate Code 15404 [Video]
    • Trusts Avoid Probate in California [Video]
    • Portability Law [Video]
    • Trusts vs Conservatorship |Video|
    • Trusts and Tax Exemptions [Video]
  • Blog
  • Why Hire Us
    • Client Reviews
    • Experience & Qualifications
    • Fiduciary Management for Trustees
    • Locations Served
    • Video Library
  • Contact Us
    • Disclaimer
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms & Conditions
You are here: Home / What is a Conservatorship and the Probate Process? / Conservatorship, Trust or Estate Plan | Which is Better?

Conservatorship, Trust or Estate Plan | Which is Better?

Page Contents

  • What is a Conservatorship?
  • What is the Purpose of a Trust?
  • What’s the Difference Between Wills and Trusts?

Jennifer F. Scharre, probate attorney, discusses when a conservatorship becomes necessary, the importance of having a trust, and how having an estate plan eliminate the need to establish a conservatorship.

 

 


 

Many clients ask me when they first walk into my office which direction they should go. Should they go the estate planning direction – create some durable power of attorney documents, advanced health directive or trust – or do they need to go the conservatorship route?  That really depends on the capacity of the individual you are working with. If someone has the capacity and is able to execute estate planning documents then a conservatorship may not be necessary at all.

Unfortunately, in my practice often times people are in a position where they are only seeing my services because we have gone too far down the road of incapacity and drafting documents at that point would not be appropriate. When that happens you do have to go to court for a conservatorship.

But, there are opportunities for the court to actually create a revocable living trust for that client even though they are conserved at the time. This is absolutely at the discretion of the court and whether they believe it is in the person’s best interest. One reason this could be good is there is less supervision, less court time and fewer people involved. Where there is a functional family and maybe some simple assets – this may be an appropriate measure for the court to take.  Other times, where there are lots of challenging family dynamics the court may want to retain jurisdiction over this estate and won’t necessarily permit one to create a revocable living trust after the conservatorship has been initiated.

The key is it’s always the court’s determination of that person’s capacity. Conservatorships are very broad in that the court can order a variety of relief. They can say that someone does still have the capacity to execute estate planning documents but potentially those documents have to be approved by the court or they could say that someone has no capacity to make any decisions in their life and that the conservator is appointed for all of those decisions.  

When you are looking at a conservatorship proceeding, you want to be clear on what is the range of what you need in order to assist your client.

To learn more, watch Jennifer’s video discussing the difficulties of a conservatorship.

Jennifer F. Scharre is an attorney at the San Jose law firm, Temmerman, Cilley & Kohlmann, LLP. She provides representation in estate planning, conservatorship matters, guardianship matters, and trust and estate administration and litigation. Jennifer may be reached at 408-290-7210 or www.tcklawfirm.com.

 


 

What is a Conservatorship?

Elderly Woman Under ConservatorshipSimply stated, a conservatorship is when the court appoints someone, usually a family member, to manage the physical care of a person who is unable to care for their self.

It could mean appointing someone to manage a person’s finances because the person is unable or incapable of doing it.

It could be both the person and the estate.

 


 

What is the Purpose of a Trust?

There are many types of trusts. A trust is often a component of an estate plan. A properly written and executed trust means one can avoid probate and the need for a conservatorship should the need arise.

Learn more about a Trust on the trusts page of our website.

 


 

What’s the Difference Between Wills and Trusts?

These two documents are part of an estate plan.  Having a trust avoids probate and a Will alone does not.

The legal documents are complex.  The more assets we have the more complex the document becomes.

There are free wills and trusts forms available online.  Estate planning for dummies can be purchased as well.

We recommend hiring a local attorney for wills, trusts and other related estate planning documents.

 

Digiprove sealCopyright secured by Digiprove © 2018-2019 Kathleen DanielsAll Rights Reserved
Original content here is published under these license terms: X 
License Type:Commercial
License Abstract:You may read the original content in the context in which it is published (at this web address). You may make other uses of the content only with the written permission of the author on payment of a fee.
Request Legal Help

Contact Kathleen For a Real Estate Consultation

Contact Kathleen for a Real Estate Consultation
Contact Consent *
Sending

Specialized Probate Team

Our team speaks the language of probate.

We understand the rules of engagement with the Probate Court and collaborate with the probate attorneys to ensure a smooth transaction.

We offer full service and manage all the details and meet your specific needs pertaining to the sale of the estate, conservatorship or trust’s real property.

Many of our clients live outside of the County of Santa Clara and the State of California. It is not uncommon that we never meet face to face.

Real Estate Broker | REALTOR®

Kathleen Daniels is a licensed California Real Estate Broker certified in probate and trust sales. Her core belief and business religion is that every client deserves to be treated with 100% honesty and transparency.

She has managed a successful real estate business since January 2003.  Clients know Kathleen to speak from her heart and act from her head.

As an Independent Broker, Kathleen has no loyalty to a brokerage. Kathleen is the sole decision-maker for Need Probate Help. She owns the independent power to do things for her clients she got prevented from doing when affiliated with a big box brokerage.

  • Home
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
Copyright © 2019 Kathleen Daniels | Independent Broker
KD Realty | CA DRE# 01366594
San Jose, CA ,95123, USA, Call: 408-972-1822

Logos_Combined
Sitemap