Do you offer free consultations?

Yes. Samantha believes that clients must have confidence, trust and comfort with her practice style and legal strategy in order to have the most efficient and effective attorney-client relationship. Therefore, Samantha provides complementary 30 minute consultations to all prospective new clients.

How do you conduct consultations?

Consultations are primarily conducted in person, but may be easily done over Zoom, Google Meet, FaceTime or the telephone. To make the most of your consultation, it is important to have all current documents pertaining to your case (e.g. estate plan, real property agreements, contracts, court pleadings, etc.) present at the meeting.

What is the cost of an estate plan and what does it include?

Please see SUPPORTING GENERATIONS TOGETHER page for details.

Do you offer a public safety or educator discount?

YES! As the spouse of a firefighter and the daughter of the sheriff, public servants are close to Samantha’s heart. Additionally, Samantha believes our educators are some of the greatest heroes in our society. If you work in public safety or education - thank you for your selfless service! For estate planning services - you may elect to take 5% off of your estate plan flat fee, or have 5% of your estate plan flat fee donated to The Fallen Officer’s Foundation or the school district of your choosing by Samantha in your name. Please see SUPPORTING GENERATIONS TOGETHER page for details.

I don’t have significant assets, but I do have minor children — do I need an estate plan?

YES! Trust us - the forethought of a well prepared and executed estate plan is a gift to your loved ones, especially your children. Guardianship decisions are among the most important provisions of an estate plan. Having a say in who will provide financial security and loving care to your children if you are incapacitated or deceased is a peace of mind all parents desire and all children deserve.

My employer or union offers access to a company that will provide me with an estate plan for $800. Why shouldn’t I just use this service?

If you can have a quality estate plan drafted and reviewed with you by an attorney (not a paralegal, “certified estate planner” or other non-licensed/non-attorney), and have it properly funded with your assets and real property for $800 - do it! However, in most situations, you get what you pay for. Often times the employer/union funded programs offering estate plans are drafted by non-attorneys. We refer to these companies as “trust mills.” California Attorney General Rob Bonta recently put a memorandum out warning consumers of these trust mills. Generally this means that these companies are not tailoring their estate plans and legal services to each client, meaning each unique personal and financial situation is not considered. Additionally, they may not be privy to the current legal and legislative changes, tax implications and more. This initially may not seem like an issue, until it becomes one, often times costing much more money than a well drafted and funded estate plan would have from the outset. If you have this particular question, please book a complementary, no obligation consultation with Samantha to discuss your questions further and determine what option fits your family best.

My spouse and I own everything as joint tenants, so we don’t need an estate plan, right?

No. It is true that when one joint tenant dies, the asset titled in joint tenancy immediately passes to the survivor, however, there are potential tax implications and undesirable personal situations that may result if no estate plan is in place. It is natural as a human to shy away from considering unforeseen personal disasters or our own demise, however, it is a part of life. If a married couple owns everything as joint tenants, what happens if both spouses die at the same time (e.g. car accident)? The assets will most likely be subject to Probate. What happens if one spouse dies and the other is incapacitated and unable to care for oneself? The surviving spouse may be subject to Conservatorship. If those spouses have minor children, in both scenarios the court system would need to step in to establish guardianships for those minor children to determine who provides care, support and housing for the minor children. Not only do all of these scenarios end up in court, they are public, expensive and potentially not follow the course in which the spouses would have directed had they made an estate plan. An estate plan consists of various documents that speak to one another and plan for common, as well as unforeseen circumstances and provide a comprehensive transition for the entire family into the next phase.

What does “funding” mean in the context of estate planning?

Creating a trust is like building a bucket. A well drafted trust will be like a bucket without holes, cracks or leaks. A poorly drafted trust will have issues that could potentially frustrate your purpose, which is why it is important to utilize an attorney that looks at your personal situation holistically and drafts a quality trust accordingly. A bucket is a useful tool to carry things, however it is relatively pointless if it is not used properly. The same can be said for a trust. Once you’ve created a trust you’ve built the bucket, however, you’re only part of the way to the finish line. The next step is to “fund” the trust by placing/titling assets in the name of the trust, essentially filling up your bucket to “carry” your assets. If you create a trust and do not fund it properly, or at all, and you die, your assets may be subject to Probate, thus making the exercise of creating the trust relatively obsolete. Working with an attorney who includes the funding of your trust as part of the estate planning package is vital to the success of your estate planning goals.

I’m refinancing a piece of real property and the lender says we must remove the real property from my trust during the process — is this common?

This is a common occurrence during the refinance process. However, it is vital that the real property be titled back into the name of the trust at closing. If you are a current client and are going through a refinance, please email Samantha so she can ensure title is proper.

How do you ensure my personal information is secure?

SAMANTHA FARREN LAW takes client privacy very seriously. Our servers are backed up and encrypted by an IT company who specifically handles legal professional’s practices. Additionally, we use a legal case management and communication system that complies with the legal requirements for electronic client records for attorneys. You can learn more about MyCase here.

My spouse recently passed away and we have a trust, is there anything I need to do right now?

Yes. Though trust administration following the first spouse’s death is usually not overly complicated, there are important, statutorily required and time sensitive administrative steps that need to be handled. Furthermore, depending on the type of trust you have and when it was created, there may need to be irrevocable substrust(s) funded or waived by beneficiaries, sometimes requiring a court order. Samantha handles all issues related to postmortem trust administration. Please contact our office for a complementary 30 minute consultation.