This blog post includes a video about elder and dependent adult abuse, and below the video you will find a link to my PowerPoint slides from a recent elder and dependent adult presentation for an attorney bar association section. Please pass this blog post to everyone who would be interested in these materials. Thank you. Dave Tate, Esq. (San Francisco and California).
Click on the following link for the PowerPoint slides from my elder and dependent adult abuse presentation, ELDER AND DEPENDENT ADULT ABUSE AND PROTECTION PRESENTATION SLIDES
Yesterday I attended the monthly San Mateo County Estate Planning and Probate Section lunch presentation. This presentation was on silent trusts, presented by attorneys Paul Barulich and Matthew Matiasevich. An interesting discussion about the planning, although rather limited planning, that parents can do in California to keep an irrevocable trust private from the beneficiaries, i.e., so that the beneficiaries don’t even know the trust exists. When might trustors desire this type of privacy from beneficiaries? One scenario could be when parents want their children to strive and achieve at least into their twenties without the certain knowledge that they will be receiving substantial trust assets. At least based on responses by attendees, not many estate planning attorneys are preparing silent trusts.
One noted tidbit of information: even if the trust is drafted as a silent trust, trustee/trust duties under California Probate Code sections 16060.7, 16061 and 16061.5 are not waivable. Thus, for example, in some situations the trustee must still provide the terms of the trust and report to the beneficiary by providing information relating to the administration of the trust relevant to the beneficiary’s interest, if the beneficiary requests the trustee to do so. Accordingly, even if a prospective beneficiary does not know that a trust exists, i.e., because the trust is silent, a prospective beneficiary should always ask a suspected trustee to provide information about any trust in which the prospective beneficiary is a beneficiary. Upon that request the trustee must provide some information.
Enjoy.
Dave Tate, Esq. (San Francisco / California) – Civil and Estate, Trust, Conservatorship and Elder Abuse Litigation – member of the Estate Planning and Probate Section Executive Committee.
My other blog, http://directorofficernews.com.
The following link will bring you to a publication by the National Institute on Aging entitled The Dementias, Hope Through Research. The publication provides a good overview or background to dementia including types, causes, diagnosis, treatment, etc. For the publication, Click Here.
Dave Tate, Esq. (San Francisco/California)
My other blog, D&O, audit committees, boards, officers, risk management, compliance and governance, http://directorofficernews.com.
California Board of Equalization proposes to tax death or “memory DVDs” 8.25%, for the discussion click on the following link, Click Here. Enjoy. Dave Tate, Esq. (San Francisco/California) My other blog, director, officer, audit committee, board, risk, governance and compliance, http://directorofficernews.com.
An interesting article discussing a finding that antipsychotic drugs for dementia increase the risk of death. I find equally interesting the numbers of elderly who are receiving antipsychotic drugs. Click on the following link for the article, Click Here.
Dave Tate, Esq. (San Francisco)
My other blog for directors, boards, audit committees, officers, CEO’s, CFO’s, risk management, governance and compliance: http://directorofficernews.com
The following is an article about a new Mayo Clinic study, that the primary cause of Alzheimer’s might not be what has generally been thought:
“Amyloid – a sticky, toxic protein found in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients — has been the focus of research and diagnosis for decades. But a new Mayo Clinic study published in the journal Brain shows that another toxic protein, called tau, may be a bigger culprit in cognitive decline and Alzheimer’s over the lifetime of the disease.”
Click on the following link for the article: Click Here.
Many of my cases involve cognitive impairment or decline, whether it be diagnosed or called Alzheimer’s, or dementia, or traumatic brain injury, or lack of mental capacity, or cognitive impairment, or otherwise.
In conservatorships the issue isn’t the diagnosis, but whether the prospective conservatee has the ability to take care of and understand financial and/or daily living tasks and to resist fraud and undue influence?
And in will and trust contests or disputes, the issue is whether the decedent understood his or her assets and the effect of the provisions in the will or trust, and whether the will or trust provisions are what the decedent would have naturally wanted if the decedent had the mental capacity to understand his or her actions and the will or trust provisions, and to resist fraud and undue influence? One additional comment: there is case law that you might not need to wait until after someone dies to contest or seek to invalidate a will or trust – this is an area of law that is developing and that is a positive development.
Dave Tate (San Francisco and California), http://californiaestatetrust.com
Click on the below video for my Top 10 List of Trust and Estate Beneficiary Rights. I have also posted below the video the text of the discussion. And feel free to forward this blog post to anyone who would be interested, including beneficiaries, and trustee and executor fiduciaries. Thank you. Dave Tate (San Francisco and California)
Text:
Hello, I’m Dave Tate. I’m a San Francisco, California civil, trust, estate, conservatorship and elder abuse litigation attorney.
After years of practice, the following is my top 10 list of trust and estate beneficiary rights in most situations.
And correspondingly, if you are a trustee or executor with fiduciary duties, satisfying these responsibilities will help put you on a good path. The following list is not in any particular order.
Here are the top 10 trust and estate beneficiary rights.
1st. To have the trustee or executor follow the terms of the trust or will.
2nd. To have the trustee or executor act and interact in the best interests of the beneficiaries.
3rd. For the trustee or executor not to self-deal.
4th. To have the assets go to the people who the Decedent would have intended if the trust or will isn’t clear or doesn’t reflect the Decedent’s true wishes.
5th. For the trustee or executor to prudently invest, spend and maximize the trust or estate assets.
6th. For the trustee or executor to take possession of and safeguard the assets.
7th. For the trustee or executor to timely and prudently manage and administer the trust or estate.
8th. For the trustee or executor to make timely distributions in accord with the terms of the trust or will.
9th. For the trustee or executor to reasonably provide timely information about the trust or estate, the assets and its management, as required. Note, as a beneficiary your requests must be reasonable and appropriate.
And 10th. For the trustee or executor to provide timely and proper accountings, as required.
If you are a trust or estate beneficiary you need to know your rights. Similarly, if you are a trustee or executor, you need to know and satisfy your duties and responsibilities to complete your tasks and avoid problems and possible liability. That’s it for now. Thanks for listening.
Dave Tate, Esq. (San Francisco and California), http://californiaestatetrust.com
Upcoming presentations:
(1) Probate Court litigation, for a group of estate planning attorneys, caregivers and fiduciaries, March 26, 2015.
(2) Elder and Dependent Adult Abuse and Protection, for the Riverside estate planning bar, April 16, 2015.
Dave Tate, Esq. (San Francisco and California)
Dementia and how to care for the person who has dementia divides many families. Click on the following link for a good discussion about family dynamics and disagreements. Estate planning documents can help avoid some of the issues – such as power of attorney, health care directive, living will, trust, and other documents. Still disagreements and contests over who will be the decision maker and what care will be provided will persist. I’m reminded of a sibling family dispute case that I was involved in over Mom’s care, her diagnosis and prognosis, whether or not Mom could communicate by blinking her eyes, Mom’s wishes for her quality of life and care, and whether Mom would want to be or should be disconnected from the hospital machine support. Click on the following link for the NBC article, CLICK HERE
Dave Tate, Esq. (San Francisco and California)
Probate, trust, estate, will, elder abuse, real property, power of attorney, conservatorship, Probate Court, and contentious administration related disputes, conflicts and litigation; and mediator and dispute resolution services. http://Californiaestatetrust.com. Note, I am posting future posts to http://tateattorney.com 