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Overview
Get Critical Tools for Shaping Your Clients' Legacies
This no-nonsense introduction to estate planning breaks it down to its key working documents and fundamental steps. Learn how to map out asset transfers during life and distributions in probate, prepare clients for incapacity and nursing home care, and more. Whether you're just getting started or looking for a practical refresher, you'll find our expert faculty's insights helpful. Get the tools and tactics you'll need to ensure your client's estates function as intended. Register today!
- Explore the top types of wills and trusts used in the practice, and pick the right one for each client.
- Build Medicaid eligibility planning into your overall plans and avoid unintentional tax and creditor exposure.
- Prevent POA abuse through wise choice of proxy and careful drafting.
- Help clients plan for medical decision-making and diminishing capacity.
- Plan for the tax consequences of trusts and other planning techniques and find ways to minimize the tax burden.
- Spot common mistakes that will land you in hot water in joint representation of spouses.
Abbreviated Agenda
- Essential Will and Trust Drafting
- Gifts, Joint Accounts, Intervivos Transfers, LLCs, IRAs, and Annuities
- Special Needs Trusts and Medicaid Planning
- Essential Tax Tactics
- Financial and Medical Decision-Making, Guardianships
- Probate in a Nutshell: What to Expect
- Legal Ethics
Credit Details
Credits Available
| Credit | Status | Total | Until |
|---|---|---|---|
| California CLE |
|
6.75 Total | 12-10-2026 |
Select Jurisdiction
CLE
Agenda
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Essential Will and Trust Drafting
- Client Intake and Crafting the Overall Plan
- Wills vs. Trusts
- Top Trusts to Use
- Drafting Essential Provisions (With Sample Language)
- Fiduciary Powers
- Distributions
- Special Clauses
-
Gifts, Joint Accounts, Intervivos Transfers, LLCs, IRAs, and Annuities
-
Special Needs Trusts and Medicaid Planning
- Medicaid Eligibility Criteria
- Medicaid Planning Tools
- Types of Special Needs Trusts
- Essential SNT Provisions
- Preserving Benefits
- ABLE Accounts
-
Essential Tax Tactics
- Current State and Federal Tax Rates and Exclusions
- Tax Tactics for Small vs. Large Estates
- Valuation of Assets
- Taxation and Tax Consequences of Trusts
-
Financial and Medical Decision-Making, Guardianships
- Choosing the Right Proxies
- "Dangerous" Powers
- Adult Guardianships
- Medical POAs and Advance Directives
-
Probate in a Nutshell: What to Expect
-
Legal Ethics
- Who Is Your Client?
- Conflicts of Interest
- Joint Representation of Spouses
- Client Capacity
- Effective Communication
- Practicing Before the IRS
- Attorney Fees, Engagement Agreements, and Client Trust Accounts
- Preventing UPL
Who Should Attend
This basic level online seminar is designed for:
- Attorneys
- Accountants and CPAs
- Tax Professionals
- Trust Officers
- Estate Planners
- Paralegals
Speakers
Speaker bio
Rebecca Van Loon
is a partner with Solomon Ward Seidenwurm & Smith LLP. She focuses her practice in the areas of estate planning, trust and probate administration, and taxation law. Ms. Van Loon assists families and individuals with all aspects of their estate planning needs, including wills, trusts, advance health care directives and financial powers of attorney. She also assists clients with estate, gift and property tax planning, including charitable gift planning. Ms. Van Loon is certified as a specialist in estate planning, trust and probate by the State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization. She earned her B.A. degree, cum laude, from Gonzaga University; her J.D. degree, cum laude, from Willamette University College of Law; and her LL.M. degree (taxation), magna cum laude, from University of San Diego School of Law.
Speaker bio
Sheila-Marie Finkelstein
, Esq. LLM. has an LLM in Taxation, is a Certified Specialist in Estate Planning, Trust & Probate Law by the California Board of Legal Specialization, is a Veterans Affairs Accredited Attorney, and is also licensed to practice in Nevada. She founded and runs the Pro Bono Estate Clinic at Veterans Legal Institute, preparing approximately 100 complete estate plans annually for veterans in need. Ms. Finkelstein, has been published multiple times in the American Bar Association national magazines and Orange County Lawyer, and teaches several continuing legal education courses through NBI, Orange County Bar Association, CEB, and CalVet. She frequently speaks at public and private events on the benefits of proper estate planning. Ms. Finkelstein is currently a Senior Counsel at Klinedinst Attorneys, in Orange County and Los Angeles. Prior to joining Klinedinst, Ms. Finkelstein founded AHAVA Law, P.C. where Estate Planning is Planning for Life…with your LOVE! ™ Ms. Finkelstein is passionate about education and veterans. She practices in estate planning because of her experiences as a clerk for the U.S. Air Force JAG Corps, and as an elementary school science teacher with Teach for America. Ms. Finkelstein. She received her J.D. from Washington & Lee University School of Law, her B.A. from American University, M.Ed. from University of Nevada – Las Vegas, and LLM from Chapman University Fowler School of Law.
Speaker bio
Jack B. Osborn
is a partner with Brown, White & Osborn, LLP, where he focuses in the areas of estate planning, and trust and probate law and is certified with the State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization. Mr. Osborn is a member of the American Bar Association; State Bar of California Conference of Bar Associations; San BernardinoCounty, Riverside County, Western San Bernardino County and Los Angeles County bar associations; Probate Attorneys of San Diego and a Joseph B. Campbell American Inn of Court board member. He earned his B.A. degree from Lewis and Clark College, his A.B.D. degree from The Claremont Graduate School and his J.D. degree from Southwestern University School of Law.
Speaker bio
Alan Forester
is an attorney and CPA at the Law & CPA Offices of Alan Forester. He practices in the areas of water law, land use and zoning, HOA issues, tax and trust law, personal injury, and criminal law. Mr. Forester earned his M.A. degree in economics and finance, his Ph.D. Candidacy degree in economics from UCLA, and his J.D. degree from Loyola Law School, Los Angeles. He is an adjunct professor at California State University (CSU) and has teaching credentials in accounting and economics. Mr. Forester is a judicial arbitrator of the Superior Court of the State of California for Los Angeles County, as well as a mandatory fee arbitration for the State Bar of California. He is a member of the United States Supreme Court; Supreme Court of California; U.S. Tax Court; Northern, Southern, Eastern, Western and Central Federal district courts of California; American Bar Association; California Bar Association; American Economics Association; American Institute of Certified Public Accountants; California Society of Certified Public Accountants; and Association of Certified Fraud Examiners.
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