Trusts, Crusts, and the Importance of Picking the Right Professionals At Kaminski Law Group, we’re proud to focus on estate planning and probate — not pizza delivery. But when we saw this playful image of a law office and a pizza parlor side-by-side, it made us think: both estate planning and pizza actually share some…
Should You Put Your Timeshare Into a Trust? Timeshares can be wonderful for making vacation memories, but when it comes to estate planning, they can also be one of the trickiest assets to deal with. Unlike a home or retirement account, a timeshare isn’t just about ownership—it comes with ongoing fees, limited availability, and, sometimes,…
Forgotten but Not Left Behind: What Happens When a Spouse Is Omitted from an Estate Plan? Estate planning is all about preparation. But life happens—and sometimes, people get married after signing a will or trust and forget to update it. In these situations, the surviving spouse may be what California law calls a pretermitted spouse—someone unintentionally…
Over the years, I’ve been asked many times whether a Transfer on Death (TOD) Deed is a good way to pass down property. These deeds were designed to simplify estate planning by avoiding probate—but in practice, they often create more problems than they solve. I no longer recommend TOD deeds to my clients—and I don’t draft them—because…
What Happens with Capital Gains Tax When You Inherit a Home in California? An example involving a daughter navigating her mother’s trust illustrates how the step-up in basis works. When Samantha’s mother, Mary Lou, passed away earlier this year, Samantha found herself navigating the responsibilities of trust administration for the first time. Mary Lou had…
