California Estate Planning & Administration Lawyer

Beyond asset distribution, proactive planning addresses potential medical or financial emergencies. Our plans include a durable power of attorney and a healthcare directive to ensure trusted individuals are authorized to protect your financial assets and make critical decisions on your behalf if you ever face unexpected incapacity.

Whether your goals focus on avoiding probate, safeguarding minor children, protecting special needs adults, minimizing potential tax issues, securing professional estate planning services will provide invaluable peace of mind.

Trust Administration

If you have been named a trustee of a loved one’s trust, the job can feel overwhelming. In California, trust administration is the legal process of managing, securing, and distributing trust assets according to the trust maker’s wishes. Unlike probate, this process takes place outside of court, offering privacy and speed—but it still requires strict legal compliance.

As a trustee, you have a fiduciary duty to administer the trust with care and efficiency. This includes identifying trust assets, paying outstanding debts, filing taxes, communicating with beneficiaries, and handling trust distribution to beneficiaries in accordance with the trust terms. Even straightforward trusts involve complex legal and financial obligations where simple mistakes can lead to trustee liability or family disputes.

The good news: you don’t have to do it alone! At Fidelitas Law, we guide trustees through trust administration every step of the way. Fidelitas Law assists trustees of California trusts, even if the trustee resides outside California.

California Probate

Navigating the loss of a loved one is incredibly difficult, and dealing with the complex legal hurdles of probate court shouldn’t add to your burden. In California, probate is the court-supervised legal process of settling a deceased person’s estate, including validating the will (if the decedent had one), inventorying their assets, settling outstanding debts, and ensuring the remaining estate distribution reaches the rightful heirs. Fidelitas Law handles probate matters throughout the state of California.

At Fidelitas Law, an experienced probate and estate attorney will guide families through every step of estate administration with clarity and compassion. We can also assist you in determining whether your loved one’s estate qualifies for a simplified non-probate transfer process.

Conservatorships

A California conservatorship is a protective court proceeding in which a judge appoints a responsible person (a conservator) to care for an adult who can no longer manage their own personal or financial affairs. In California, conservatorship cases are handled by the probate department of the superior court in the county where the proposed conservatee resides. Fidelitas Law handles conservatorships in Alameda County, Contra Costa County, Solano County, San Mateo County, San Joaquin County, and Stanislaus County.

Navigating the conservatorship process requires a deep understanding of the California Probate Code, as the court must establish that a legal incapacity exists. A dedicated conservatorship attorney at Fidelitas Law guides families through these sensitive legal hurdles. Whether your loved one requires a conservatorship of the person (to oversee medical care and daily living) or a conservatorship of the estate (to manage financial assets and protect against elder abuse), securing experienced conservatorship legal counsel is vital.

If you need assistance with estate planning, trust administration, a probate, or a conservatorship, contact Fidelitas Law today at (925) 266-3449 or info@fidelitaslaw.com.