For parents raising a child with developmental disabilities, the child’s eighteenth birthday can create an unexpected legal transition. Although the...
Articles
Don’t Wait Until It’s Too Late: How Proper Estate Planning Can Help Your Family Avoid a California Conservatorship
Most people think estate planning is only about what happens after they die. In reality, one of the most valuable benefits of a comprehensive estate...
Receiving a Personal Injury Settlement? A First-Party Special Needs Trust May Help Preserve Medi-Cal and SSI
A personal injury settlement can provide essential financial security after a serious injury. It may help pay for medical care, accessible housing,...
Personal Injury Settlements and First-Party Special Needs Trusts: What Every California PI Lawyer Should Know
A successful personal injury settlement can provide lifelong financial security. For a client receiving—or likely to receive—Supplemental Security...
Thinking About Adding Your Child to Your Home Deed? Read This First.
Imagine for a moment that you have lived in your Vista home for thirty years. You paid off the mortgage, raised your children there, and watched the...
First-Party Special Needs Trusts for Settlement Proceeds in California
When a person with a disability receives a personal injury settlement, medical malpractice recovery, workers’ compensation settlement,...
Pooled Special Needs Trusts in California: When a Nonprofit Trust May Make Sense
Imagine for a moment that you live in Vista, and your adult child has lived with a disability since birth. They rely on Medi-Cal and SSI for their...
Third-Party Special Needs Trusts: Planning Ahead for a Loved One With Disabilities
Parents, grandparents, and relatives often want to leave money to a loved one with disabilities. The goal is simple: provide stability, dignity, and...
Do I Need Probate if My Parent Died Owning a House in San Diego County?
Imagine for a moment: You’ve just spent a long afternoon sorting through boxes in your late father’s garage in Vista. You find the original deed to...
How the #FreeBritney Movement Changed California Conservatorship Law: 3 Major Reforms
The highly publicized battle over Britney Spears’ conservatorship didn’t just capture international attention—it changed California law. For...
When Is a Limited Conservatorship Needed in California?
A limited conservatorship in California is a legal tool designed to help adults with developmental disabilities who need support with certain...
Major 2025 Changes to California Conservatorship Law: What You Need to Know
Author: Duisters Giarratano, APC | San Diego Conservatorship Attorneys California's conservatorship laws have undergone significant reforms in 2025,...
Real Life Stories: He Waited Too Long.
Jack was a 60-year-old fun-loving guy with many close friends. He was never married and never had children. Jack had a large extended family, but he...
Keeping it Simple Series: They Forgot to Transfer the House
Imagine for a moment you are a trust beneficiary. In the trust it says you are entitled to receive a house worth $1 million. That’s great! Imagine...
Keeping it Simple Series: Changing Residence of a Conserved Person
A “conserved person” is a person under Conservatorship. A Conservatorship is established to protect people who cannot properly provide...
Keeping it Simple Series: Transferring Martial Property.
Here is the real-life story. Jane and John were married in 1950. They bought a home a few years later and lived in that home for their entire...
Keeping it Simple Series: Revoking a Probate. The Why and How.
Here is the scenario: A family member filed a petition for probate to have decedent's Will admitted to probate and administered. They were supposed...
Keeping it Simple Series: Can a Power of Attorney Agent Amend a Trust?
The short answer is, it depends. That is a typical lawyer answer for you, but it really does depend on some key wording in two documents – the...
Real Life Law Stories: He Could Have Avoided Conservatorship.
Tom was 40 years old. He was divorced and had three children. Tom was healthy and fit and no reason to suspect a medical emergency at such a young...
![Keeping it Simple Series: The [Probate] Referee Blows the Whistle.](https://duisterslaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/referee_blows_the_whistle.jpg)
Keeping it Simple Series: The [Probate] Referee Blows the Whistle.
Everyone knows what a referee is. Every sport has one. But a referee in probate court? Yes. He or she doesn’t have a whistle, but their...
Transaction When Spouse Lacks Capacity: How do it Without a Conservatorship or Power of Attorney
Real life story: Ron and Barb were in their 70’s. Sadly, Ron developed Dementia and was under doctor supervision. Ron was unable to remember...
Keeping it Simple Series: What does Independent Administration of Estates Act (IAEA) Authority Mean?
In my Keeping it Simple Series I break down complicated legal terms and theories in Probate and Estate Planning so that they are easily understood....
Incomplete Beneficiary Designations on Retirement Accounts will Send Your Family in Probate Court.
If you have an estate plan (a Will, Trust, Power of Attorney and Advance Health Care Directive), you’re a planner. Good job! With your estate...
Where does my property go if I die without a Will? Explaining Intestate Succession in California.
You may have heard the term "Intestate Succession." What does that mean? In California, there are specific Probate Codes (PRC 6400-6414)...
Visualizing the Probate Process
What Happens During the Probate Process? 1. Authenticate the last will and testament 2. Identify and notify heirs and beneficiaries 3. Appoint the...
When the Court Investigator Comes-a-knockin’. Part 2.
In part 1, the court investigator came-a-knocking to investigate new conservatorship petitions filed with the court. What most people don’t...
When the Court Investigator Comes-a-Knockin’. Part 1.
You filed a petition in the probate court for appointment of conservatorship over a loved-one because you want to manage their personal and/or...
Nominating a Guardian for Minor Children – What it Actually Means.
Parents with minor children often ask me about appointing a guardian for their minor children if anything were to happen to them. I’ve...
My parents made a will, so I can give myself my inheritance, right? Wrong.
Chances are, you've contemplated this question if your parents or loved-one recently passed away and left a will naming you as a beneficiary....