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Thomas L. Gourde an experienced California attorney that handles California Living Trusts. A trust is an arrangement under which one person, called a trustee, holds legal title to property for another person, called a beneficiary. You can be the trustee of your own living trust,...

Thomas L. Gourde is an experienced estate planning attorney who understands California’s special requirements for California Estate Planning Trusts and Wills. For a will, when you are an executor, everything starts with the validity of the document and its language. It is the...

The California probate process is expensive, time-consuming and open to the public. If you leave your estate to your loved ones using a will, everything you own will pass through probate. California’s probate court is in control of the process until the estate has been...

If a decedent had a properly drafted and funded trust, probate is generally not required in California. Unlike a will, a trust is a private document and need not be filed with the probate court. Nonetheless, the successor trustee must still take steps to administer the trust....

Adults are assumed to be capable of making their own decisions and acting in a way that is in their own best interests. However, there are times when a person lacks this ability. Some people never have this capability. California Conservatorships and Guardianships law provides...

Financial assets controlled by an elderly person are often vulnerable to fraud and other forms of financial abuse by criminals and even unscrupulous family members. California Elder Law is intended to protect elder abuse. Financial elder abuse can take many forms, including the...

Thomas Gourde is an experienced EDD Tax Attorney representing businesses faced with California EDD and/or FTB Tax Liability Claims. The State of California has one of the most complex sets of tax regulations out of all the states in the Nation. The primary tax issues faced by...

Liability is a concern for any individual in a position of responsibility, authority or trust, particularly company directors or officers, brokers in both the real estate and financial industries and those who provide investment advice and financial planning. Claims against such...

California Insurance Defense encompasses the defense of claims made by injured or harmed victims against the responsible insured for either negligence or malpractice in the state of California. Dealing with insurance is a fact of life – whether you drive a car, provide...

Insurance Coverage and Bad Faith Claims is a legal term that describes a tort claim when an insured person or company has a claim against an insurance company for its bad faith. Insurance companies owe a duty of good faith and fair dealing to any individual or entity that they...