Probate Notes: Your Guide to Navigating California Probate Law

045: Fiduciary Banking for Probate: What Attorneys Need to Know About Estate and Trust Accounts with Blanca Alfaro

Sam Price sits down with Blanca Alfaro, a relationship banking specialist at CalPrivate Bank, to break down exactly what probate attorneys, fiduciaries, and personal representatives need to know about estate and trust banking in California. Blanca walks through the full account setup process, from gathering probate letters and death certificates to funding accounts remotely via wire or FedEx, all without the client ever stepping foot in a branch. She covers blocked accounts, joint control accounts, extended FDIC insurance, U.S. Treasury bond redemptions, medallion stamps, and the court forms attorneys deal with every day, including MC355 and MC356. What sets Blanca apart is her approach. She meets clients at home, at coffee shops, even at hospitals, because getting the paperwork done right matters more than keeping office hours. This one is packed with practical detail that will make the next probate matter easier to manage. In this episode, you will hear: * Opening estate and trust accounts remotely, without clients ever visiting a branch * What documents CalPrivate Bank needs to get started, from probate letters to death certificates and EINs * How blocked accounts work, what triggers a court order to release funds, and the specific court forms attorneys use daily * Extended FDIC insurance that keeps all estate funds under one roof, one statement, and one year-end 1099 * Two-signature and joint control accounts, and how CalPrivate actually monitors and confirms both approvals before any funds move * U.S. Treasury bond redemptions, medallion stamps, and notary services handled directly by the bank's team * The relationship banking difference, personal contacts, no 800 numbers, and a specialist who has met clients at hospitals, coffee shops, and home visits to get the job done Resources from this Episode https://calprivate.bank/directors/blanca-alfaro/ [https://calprivate.bank/directors/blanca-alfaro/] https://www.linkedin.com/in/blanca-alfaro-10b9486/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/blanca-alfaro-10b9486/] The 6-Stage Probate Process: How to Navigate California Probate: https://a.co/d/82310Rw [https://a.co/d/82310Rw] Follow and Review: We'd love for you to follow us if you haven't yet. Click that purple '+' in the top right corner of your Apple Podcasts app. We'd love it even more if you could drop a review or 5-star rating over on Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/probate-notes-your-guide-to-navigating-california-probate/id1808728561]. Simply select "Ratings and Reviews" and "Write a Review" then a quick line with your favorite part of the episode. It only takes a second and it helps spread the word about the podcast. Episode Credits If you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Emerald City Productions. They helped me grow and produce the podcast you are listening to right now. Find out more at https://emeraldcitypro.com [https://emeraldcitypro.com/] Let them know we sent you.

044: Property Tax Exclusions in California Probate: The Rules Most Families Get Wrong, with Gregory R. Broege

California property taxes don't follow simple rules, and that gap in knowledge costs families thousands of dollars every year. In this episode, Sam Price sits down with Gregory R. Broege, a partner at Ajalat, Polley, Ayoob, Matarese, and Broege, to break down what actually happens to property taxes when a real property owner dies in California. Gregory walks through the interspousal exclusion, the sweeping 2021 changes to the parent/child exclusion under Prop 19, grandparent/grandchild transfers, equalized distributions, and the co-tenancy exclusion for unmarried co-owners. The difference between the old rules and the new ones isn't academic. A family home that qualified for full exclusion before 2021 could now trigger a partial reassessment even when every requirement is met. Anyone working in California probate needs to understand these rules before a filing deadline passes. In this episode, you will hear: * Prop 13 basics and why California property taxes reset at death * How the interspousal exclusion protects surviving spouses from reassessment * The 2021 Prop 19 changes that rewrote the parent/child exclusion rules * Filing deadlines and homeowner's exemption requirements heirs must meet * When the grandparent/grandchild exclusion applies and why the middle generation matters * Equalized distributions and trust loans as strategies for keeping the Prop 13 base * The co-tenancy exclusion for unmarried co-owners sharing a principal residence Resources from this Episode https://apataxlaw.com/personnel/gregory-r-broege/ [https://apataxlaw.com/personnel/gregory-r-broege/] The 6-Stage Probate Process: How to Navigate California Probate: https://a.co/d/82310Rw [https://a.co/d/82310Rw] Follow and Review: We'd love for you to follow us if you haven't yet. Click that purple '+' in the top right corner of your Apple Podcasts app. We'd love it even more if you could drop a review or 5-star rating over on Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/probate-notes-your-guide-to-navigating-california-probate/id1808728561]. Simply select "Ratings and Reviews" and "Write a Review" then a quick line with your favorite part of the episode. It only takes a second and it helps spread the word about the podcast. Episode Credits If you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Emerald City Productions. They helped me grow and produce the podcast you are listening to right now. Find out more at https://emeraldcitypro.com [https://emeraldcitypro.com/] Let them know we sent you.

043: What Most Solo Attorneys Get Wrong About Law Firm Profitability with Bree Herman

Sam Price sits down with Bree Herman, founder of Herman Ledge Services, to talk about the financial systems that keep law firms out of trouble and in the black. Bree works with solo attorneys and growing firms across the country, specializing in Clio Manage and QuickBooks Online, and she brings a practitioner's clarity to topics most attorneys would rather avoid. In this episode, Bree walks through the Clio features firms underuse, how trust account reconciliation actually works, why your bank balance is not your cashflow, and what it takes to know whether a case was actually profitable. If you have ever wondered whether your firm's finances are as clean as your filings, this episode gives you a place to start. In this episode, you will hear: * Using Clio matter templates to cut setup time and enforce consistency across staff * Why your bank balance is not a reliable measure of firm health * Trust account three-way reconciliation and how to do it correctly * Tracking profitability at the case and matter level, not just firm-wide * How to build a cashflow picture that accounts for uncleared checks and advance costs * The role QuickBooks Online plays alongside Clio in a compliant financial system * Knowing when to ask for help before the books become a problem Resources from this Episode hello@breeherman.com [hello@breeherman.com] https://hermanledge.com/booking [https://hermanledge.com/booking] https://www.linkedin.com/in/bree-herman/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/bree-herman/] The 6-Stage Probate Process: How to Navigate California Probate: https://a.co/d/82310Rw [https://a.co/d/82310Rw] Follow and Review: We'd love for you to follow us if you haven't yet. Click that purple '+' in the top right corner of your Apple Podcasts app. We'd love it even more if you could drop a review or 5-star rating over on Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/probate-notes-your-guide-to-navigating-california-probate/id1808728561]. Simply select "Ratings and Reviews" and "Write a Review" then a quick line with your favorite part of the episode. It only takes a second and it helps spread the word about the podcast. Episode Credits If you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Emerald City Productions. They helped me grow and produce the podcast you are listening to right now. Find out more at https://emeraldcitypro.com [https://emeraldcitypro.com/] Let them know we sent you.

042: Nursing Home Abuse and Elder Neglect: What Families Need to Know About Legal Rights and Claims in California

When a loved one enters a nursing home, most families assume they're safe. James Morgan, founding partner at Lanzone Morgan, LLP in Long Beach, has spent 26 years proving that assumption wrong, and fighting back when it fails. Morgan breaks down how skilled nursing facilities are licensed in California, where families can research complaint histories (canhr.org is the first stop), and what the warning signs of elder abuse and neglect actually look like. He also clarifies two legal claims that confuse almost everyone: the survival action, which belongs to the deceased, and the wrongful death claim, which belongs to the heirs. They're different cases, different money, and sometimes a source of real conflict when estate beneficiaries and heirs aren't the same people. Sam Price covers exactly why probate attorneys need to understand this area of law, and why getting documents in order before a crisis hits changes everything. In this episode, you will hear: * What skilled nursing facilities are and how they differ from hospitals * How California licenses and regulates nursing homes * Where to research complaint histories and red flags before choosing a facility * The legal difference between elder abuse and negligence claims * What survival actions and wrongful death claims are, and why they pay out differently * When and why a probate needs to be opened to pursue an elder abuse case * How conflicting interests between estate beneficiaries and heirs can complicate settlements Resources from this Episode The 6-Stage Probate Process: How to Navigate California Probate: https://a.co/d/82310Rw [https://a.co/d/82310Rw] Look Up Any California Nursing Home: http://canhr.org [http://canhr.org] Contact Lanzone Morgan, LLP: https://lanzonemorgan.com/contact/ [https://lanzonemorgan.com/contact/] Learn more about James: https://lanzonemorgan.com/our-team/james-morgan/ [https://lanzonemorgan.com/our-team/james-morgan/] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lanzone-morgan-llp/ [https://www.linkedin.com/company/lanzone-morgan-llp/] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@LanzoneMorganLLP [https://www.youtube.com/@LanzoneMorganLLP] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lanzonemorgan/ [https://www.facebook.com/lanzonemorgan/] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lanzonemorgan/ [https://www.instagram.com/lanzonemorgan/] Follow and Review: We'd love for you to follow us if you haven't yet. Click that purple '+' in the top right corner of your Apple Podcasts app. We'd love it even more if you could drop a review or 5-star rating over on Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/probate-notes-your-guide-to-navigating-california-probate/id1808728561]. Simply select "Ratings and Reviews" and "Write a Review" then a quick line with your favorite part of the episode. It only takes a second and it helps spread the word about the podcast. Episode Credits If you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Emerald City Productions. They helped me grow and produce the podcast you are listening to right now. Find out more at https://emeraldcitypro.com [https://emeraldcitypro.com/] Let them know we sent you.

041: Estate Audit Essentials With Josh Yager

Most estate plans fail before anyone dies. The trust document is fine — the funding, the beneficiary designations, the asset titling — that's where families get blindsided. Sam Price sits down with Josh Yager, Esq., CFP® and Managing Partner of Anodos Law, to walk through the estate audit: a six-stage process designed to catch those problems while there's still time to fix them cheaply. Josh breaks down the three types of assets every estate contains, explains what an "orphaned case" costs a family, and makes the case for why adjacent professionals — CPAs, financial advisors — should be running estate audits, not waiting for the attorney's call after the diagnosis. Josh has settled enough estates to know exactly where things go wrong. This conversation is a practical guide for anyone who touches the estate planning or settlement process. In this episode, you will hear: * Why most estate plans fail at funding, not drafting * The three asset types every family needs to understand * What an orphaned case is and why it blindsides families * The six stages of a proactive estate audit * How the "treasure map" prevents a successor trustee from flying blind * The gray wave coming for California's trust and estate profession * Why CPAs and financial advisors should run estate audits, not wait for the call Resources from this Episode https://trustee-help.com/ [https://trustee-help.com/] The 6-Stage Probate Process: How to Navigate California Probate: https://a.co/d/82310Rw [https://a.co/d/82310Rw] Follow and Review: We'd love for you to follow us if you haven't yet. Click that purple '+' in the top right corner of your Apple Podcasts app. We'd love it even more if you could drop a review or 5-star rating over on Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/probate-notes-your-guide-to-navigating-california-probate/id1808728561]. Simply select "Ratings and Reviews" and "Write a Review" then a quick line with your favorite part of the episode. It only takes a second and it helps spread the word about the podcast. Episode Credits If you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Emerald City Productions. They helped me grow and produce the podcast you are listening to right now. Find out more at https://emeraldcitypro.com [https://emeraldcitypro.com/] Let them know we sent you.