Wills and Trusts, Estate Planning, Estate Litigation & Conservatorships for Palm Springs, Palm Desert, Indio and Coachella Valley

Trusts and Estate Planning

From Palm Springs to Palm Desert to Indio and the surrounding areas of the Coachella Valley, Cosgrove, Cosgrove & Humphrey has a reputation for expertise in estate planning. When unprepared events can consume assets accumulated over a lifetime of work, it pays to be prepared.

Estate planning is planning in advance for the distribution of your wealth, real estate and assets for the well-being of your family and loved ones. We are an experienced legal team that understands the laws governing gifts, estates and trusts. Cosgrove, Cosgrove & Humphrey provides a complete range of trust and estate services to our clients. From assistance with California power of attorney decisions to the development of revocable living trusts, we use our knowledge to help our clients fulfill their goals.

One of many benefits of your estate plan is probate avoidance. Whether you die with a will or you die without a will, your property may be subject to a probate proceedings to legally transfer your assets to your beneficiaries. Probate can be expensive and time consuming; and public courts supervise the process to transfer assets. The probate threshold in California is only $100,000.

Estate Administration - Probate and Trust Administration

Trusts are established with similar objectives, but may be administered with or without court supervision, depending on the terms of the trust and the manner by which it was created. A trustee administers the trust assets for the beneficiaries named in the trust in accordance with the trust terms. The trust instrument sets forth the testamentary desires of the person who established the trust.

There are circumstances when the affairs of a decedent may be handled without a probate proceeding or the administration of a trust. Typically, these circumstances involve a decedent with a small estate, assets held in joint tenancy, or an estate comprising of only life insurance or retirement benefits.

If someone close to you has passed away, you may have questions about your rights and responsibilities. Or you may have concerns that someone acting as a representative of the estate is not fulfilling his or her duties. We welcome your inquiries by e-mail or by telephone.

Cosgrove, Cosgrove & Humphrey handles trust and estate administrations in the Palm Springs, Palm Desert, and Indio. In addition, Cosgrove, Cosgrove & Humphrey will assist fiduciaries in preparing and submitting accountings to courts and beneficiaries, and transferring assets without formal court administration.

Probate is when the court supervises the processes that transfer legal title of property from the estate of the person who has died (the "decedent") to his or her beneficiaries. When someone dies, either with or without leaving a will, there are often estate matters that need to be handled, such as changing title to property and completing tax forms. Usually, someone will have to fill out court forms and appear in court to: prove that the will is valid; appoint a legal representative with authority to act on behalf of the decedent; identify and inventory the decedent's property and have it appraised; pay debts and taxes, and distribute the remaining property.

Cosgrove, Cosgrove & Humphrey attorneys are able to handle both general representation and special appearances for primary and ancillary probate proceedings, contested matters, other litigation involving probate.

Estate Litigation

If you lost a family member and believe that your interests are not being rightfully protected in the estate litigation, Cosgrove, Cosgrove & Humphrey will represent you to insure your rights are being protected. Cosgrove, Cosgrove & Humphrey handles cases throughout Riverside and the Coachella Valley in which our clients have reason to believe that a third party had undue influence on the deceased's estate planning. We also handle will contest cases in which an heir has reason to believe the terms of a will were improperly misstated due to lack of mental competence.

However, transferring property when someone dies can be complicated. If someone close to you has recently died, we strongly encourage you to have us handle the outstanding legal matters on your behalf, so that you can focus on taking care of your family during its time of loss.

During the estate litigation process we will first focus on trying to settle the litigation through less combative means, such as a fair settlement. We counsel our clients that going to court will not always resolve a problem, and often alternate means of dispute resolution are more prudent and practical alternatives to estate litigation.

Courts, like lawyers, cannot solve every problem. We choose our cases carefully as estate litigation attorneys, and we counsel our clients to likewise pick their battles just as selectively. Our lawyers help our clients make sense of their situation before jumping into a court case that may or may not serve their ultimate interests.

Conservatorship

Sometimes, due to age or infirmity, people lose the ability to make sound decisions. When a person is unable to make good decisions about his or her financial or personal affairs or has become susceptible to fraud or undue influence, the court can establish a conservatorship for that individual, and name a person to be responsible for the conservatorship. If you believe your loved one may need a conservatorship, contact Cosgrove, Cosgrove & Humphrey for a consultation.

From Palm Springs to Palm Desert to Indio and the surrounding areas of the Coachella Valley and all of Riverside County, Cosgrove, Cosgrove & Humphrey offers a complete service that families depend on when applying a conservatorship over an adult who requires the assistance of a conservator. Obtaining legal guardianship or conservatorship is often complex and a frustrating process and often results in disputes between family members.

Want to learn more about the legal services Cosgrove, Cosgrove & Humphrey can offer you? Contact us today. We are pleased to discuss: Estate Planning, Wills and Trusts, Probate, Conservatorships and many more strategies available to you.