The RegistryPractice Area · Statewide
Estate Planning Attorneys in California
Counsel for wills, trusts, and probate — the paperwork that outlives you, done right. This is the statewide record for estate planning in California — every attorney on the State Bar of California's official roll whose practice reaches this shelf, scored in the open by the published Growth Score.
Californians search this field under many names — estate planning attorney, estate planning lawyer, living trust lawyer, living trust attorney, will attorney — and the registry answers all of them from the same source. Below: the governing deadline with its citation, what to weigh as you read the roster, the questions Californians ask with the code sections that answer them, and the record city by city, from the North Coast to the border.
The clock & the craft
120 days to contest a trust after the trustee's statutory notice.
Cal. Prob. Code § 16061.8
A trustee's notification under Prob. Code § 16061.7 starts a 120-day contest window. Creditor claims in probate are generally barred one year after death (Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 366.2).
Reading the roster
For planning, look for attorneys who practice estate law day in and day out — ask whether the fee is flat, what the package includes (trust, pour-over will, powers of attorney, health care directive, deed work to fund the trust), and how updates are handled after marriages, births, or moves. For probate or trust administration, ask about experience in the county's probate department, statutory fees under Prob. Code § 10810, and expected timelines.
Estate Planning · statewide roster
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Estate Planning questions, cited
What makes a will valid in California?
A formal will must be in writing, signed by the testator, and witnessed by two people present at the same time who understand it is a will (Cal. Prob. Code § 6110). A holographic will — with the signature and material terms in the testator's own handwriting — needs no witnesses (Cal. Prob. Code § 6111). California also offers a fill-in statutory will form (Prob. Code § 6240).
Does a living trust avoid probate in California?
Assets properly titled in a revocable living trust pass under the trust's terms without probate administration — the successor trustee distributes them per Cal. Prob. Code §§ 16000 et seq. The trust only works for assets actually transferred into it; property left outside may still require probate unless it fits the small-estate procedures or passes by beneficiary designation.
When is probate required in California, and can a small estate skip it?
Probate is generally required when a decedent's California property exceeds the small-estate threshold of Cal. Prob. Code § 13100 — $184,500 for deaths on or after April 1, 2022, adjusted periodically. Below it, successors can collect assets by affidavit 40 days after death. Real property has separate simplified procedures (Prob. Code §§ 13150, 13200) at lower value limits.
How long do I have to contest a trust or a will in California?
For a trust, 120 days after the trustee serves the notification required by Cal. Prob. Code § 16061.7 (or 60 days after receiving the trust terms on request, if later) — Prob. Code § 16061.8. A will contest is filed before admission to probate or, after admission, within 120 days (Cal. Prob. Code § 8270). Missing these windows usually ends the challenge.
What happens if I die without a will in California?
Your estate passes by intestate succession under Cal. Prob. Code §§ 6400 et seq. Community property goes to the surviving spouse; separate property is divided among spouse, children, parents, or siblings by statutory formula. The court chooses the administrator and heirs are fixed by statute rather than by your wishes — the situation an estate plan exists to prevent.
Legal information, not legal advice.
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Read the record. Then decide.
Describe your matter once, weigh the published scores, and place the call — the choice is always yours.
Find Your Counsel195,000+ attorneys · 58 counties · Scored in the open