A few caveats in the world of publicly recorded documents, specifically for real estate, is the title of a document. For instance, if you are recording a substitution of trustee by itself you are charged for one document, however if you have a title such as substitution of trustee and full reconveyance, then that counts […]

In the talent management field, the importance of trust is not to be underestimated. To be successful in today’s competitive environment, leaders must build and maintain strong, trusting relationships at work. Charles Feltman’s The Thin Book of Trust observes 4 Distinctions of Trust that foster this type of relationship: Sincerity – “I mean what I […]

California passed a new law permitting a physician to prescribe a life-ending drug for a terminal patient. The California End of Life Option Act is effective this June. It dramatically increases the number of people in the United States who live in a state allowing someone to choose to end their life with the assistance […]

Many items within a household can affect the overall value of the estate. These items include art, jewelry, collectibles, antiques, musical instruments, and the house itself. Appraisals provide a snapshot in time of each item’s value. This helps estate planning attorneys to accurately structure equitable distribution of assets as dictated by the client. Appraising Art […]

DEAR PBC,I recently had a discussion with a networking connection and we talked about holding a private seminar for their clients. I’m really excited about this opportunity and for the endorsement from them; however, my contact mentioned I would only be able to present for 10 minutes and there are other speakers in the lineup. […]

As estate planning attorneys, we prepare plans for clients which include documents such as wills, trusts, and powers of attorney, and advise clients on their use. In that regard I thought a recent California appellate case would be of interest to estate planning attorneys around the country. In Monschke v. Timber Ridge Assisted Living, LLC, […]

I’m always on the lookout for helpful tools related to advance care planning. Here’s one to help clients and their doctors communicate better – so that your clients can make the best decisions about their care at critical times.National Healthcare Decisions Day (NHDD) is coming soon – April 16. You may want to share this […]

It seems like we just wrapped up one webinar here at the Academy, and we’re already gearing up for the next in our Spring series! I’m so excited for this webinar and I can’t wait to get you all on it with us! On March 16 at 2pm PT / 5pm ET, the Academy founders, […]

Saving for retirement is important for all of us and our clients. Some clients know all about their retirement options and others do not. There is often particular confusion about Roth IRAs and Roth 401(k)s and how they differ from their traditional counterparts. With traditional IRAs and 401(k)s, the contributions to the accounts are deductible […]

Tis the season to refocus and reinvent. My favorite season!At the Academy we spent the entire month of January and first part of February with each department having its own “Retreat” (By the way, Sanford Fisch let me know he hates that word, “we aren’t retreating, we’re advancing“). Whatever we end up calling it next […]