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In California, there is no such thing as common law marriage. This means that unless a couple is married, a domestic partner or cohabitating partner may not claim any asset as his or hers unless stated in the deceased person's will.

There are many financial solutions for California residents who need to manage assets that will be left to their heirs in the future. In many cases, individuals with significant assets are looking for opportunities to minimize the risk of probate activity after their death.

California taxpayers may be interested to learn that the Internal Revenue Service recently announced that it will no longer be sending out a letter notifying those who have filed Form 706, which is used to calculate a decedent's estate tax, that the filing has been accepted.

Children with disabilities can face various challenges upon losing their parents, especially if their disabilities make them dependent on full-time caregivers.

The Internal Revenue Service recently announced that the federal estate and gift tax exemption would be raised for 2016. This increase can impact the way that wealthy individuals in California handle their estate planning.

Being the executor under a will is not just an honorary position to show one's importance to a relative or friend as this role comes with many responsibilities and can take a lot of one's time.

California residents should be aware that the estate tax exemption is projected to rise to $5.45 million in 2016. Married couples would be able to shield up to $10.9 million in combined assets.

Those who wish to avoid probate have a few options at their disposal. First, it may be possible to put assets into a revocable grantor trust. In such a scenario, an individual makes a gift to the trust that he or she is the trustee of.

An executor is in charge of handling a decedent's estate. The first steps of this process involve gathering the assets and determining their value. In some cases, the executor will need to have an expert appraise assets.

For many California residents, estate planning is best handled in the simplest way possible. The most basic form of ensuring that an individual's heirs get their assets is to leave property to them in a will.