Meissner Joseph Palley & Ruggles Inc » Probate Court
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I have a personal law practice that is 100% devoted to California probate court cases only. My goal is for this website to be your one-source solution for information on California Probate Law, whether big or small estates. Since 1979, Providing Legal Expertise For Probate Matters Throughout California
Meissner Joseph Palley & Ruggles Inc » Probate Court
1y ago
Efficiency in probate filing even when sheltering in place. That’s what I do! I have been a California probate attorney for over 25 years. My practice is focused and completely dedicated to California probates ONLY. Because of this I continue to refine my system so I can be more efficient. The Covid-19/Coronavirus global pandemic has given me the important to work on further refinement of the system while working from home.
Some courts are accepting e-filing, some courts require “wet ink” originals, and some courts are taking anything. We are paying attention to this as we ha ..read more
Meissner Joseph Palley & Ruggles Inc » Probate Court
1y ago
People are often confused on this one. How do you lodge a will in a California probate? Many people, over the years, have asked if you file the will with the county clerk or with the county recorder. The correct answer is you lodge a will with the California Superior Court in the county of residence of the decedent.
So this last sentence has a few components to break down.
Notice I said you “lodge” a will. You do NOT “file” a will. What’s the difference? If you go to the courthouse and say you want to “file” a will they will do just that. They will add the will to the actual case f ..read more
Meissner Joseph Palley & Ruggles Inc » Probate Court
1y ago
This is great news for us attorneys who practice regularly in the Placer County probate court. In fact, my office is in Roseville, CA which, of course, is in Western Placer County. This email was sent to me as a member of the Placer County Bar Association. I wanted to share with all of you as it includes valuable information and valuable links. Please contact us with questions about a Placer county probate as well as probates in any other probate court in California.
Stay well and stay safe!
-John Palley
Placer County Superior Court E-Filing
TO ALL PCBA MEMBERS AND CONTACTS
Placer ..read more
Meissner Joseph Palley & Ruggles Inc » Probate Court
1y ago
A lot of attorneys call themselves a “probate attorney.” My question to you is: do you want a “probate attorney” or a “probate court attorney?” My suggestion is you make sure you get a California Probate COURT attorney. I’ll tell you the difference and why it matters.
At the time of writing this post I have been an attorney since 1994 – about 27 years! During the first 20+ years I considered myself a “probate attorney.” I had probate court cases AND I also drafted wills and trusts… AND I did some conservatorships and guardianships… AND I did some trust administration… AND I e ..read more
Meissner Joseph Palley & Ruggles Inc » Probate Court
1y ago
How E-filing works in California probate courts differs, a lot, from county to county. Some options:
Some counties are still 100% paper filing;
Some counties are close to 100% E-filing;
Some counties say they are E-filing but require paper filing;
The point is it’s different throughout the state. It’s changing all the time. For example, just in the past few months Placer and Yolo counties went to E-filing. Unfortunately implementing a new system when you are short staffed and/or aren’t open to the public can be a nightmare!
Some counties, like Santa Clara, require everything be done el ..read more
Meissner Joseph Palley & Ruggles Inc » Probate Court
1y ago
Our Court runner reminded us this morning that the Placer county Superior Court, probate division, IS still accepting filings for new probate cases at the Roseville courthouse. This is a dropbox service and not live with a clerk. As a reminder I am speaking about the HON. HOWARD G. GIBSON COURTHOUSE which is located at:
Main Courthouse
Departments 30 – 44
10820 Justice Center Drive
Roseville, CA 95678
(916) 408-6000
The reason this is important is you want to get your probate case filed so you can get a court date. I call this getting the ball rolling! Probate is 7 mont ..read more
Meissner Joseph Palley & Ruggles Inc » Probate Court
1y ago
Ok, maybe nobody uses the exact words “Why should I not hire the cheapest probate attorney?” However, I think it’s human nature to try to save a few bucks. I like to get a deal just like the next guy. On the other hand I know when I get what I pay for.
I am always up front with my clients that the California probate attorneys fees that are laid out in the California probate code are a cap. I want my clients to be fully informed. I don’t want there to be secrets between us. It’s a CAP but for myself, and I would most experienced probate attorneys, it’s what we charge. Th ..read more
Meissner Joseph Palley & Ruggles Inc » Probate Court
1y ago
We got this update from the Sacramento probate court and I wanted to share with my readers as I know a lot of people visit my site are looking for help with Sacramento county probates.
SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA COUNTY OF SACRAMENTO
WWW.SACCOURT.CA.GOV
Effective March 25, 2020
Implementation of Court Closure Mitigation Plan
from March 25, 2020 to April 1, 2020
Probate Proceedings
The Coronavirus (COVID-19) poses an unprecedented health and safety threat to the public. Due to the increasing risks presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, all court operations shall be closed to the public as ..read more
Meissner Joseph Palley & Ruggles Inc » Probate Court
1y ago
We posted last week how things are changing by the day and how each court is doing things differently. There are a lot of California court closures. I will not summarize all here as one of the document filing companies (One Legal), who we use, has put a nice summary on their website. Here is the link to that page. So if you are wondering what is going on in a particular county check this page out. This will have the latest COVID-19 / Coronavirus UPDATE.
If you have specific California probate questions, related to the Coronavirus or not, as we are here to help!
Stay safe and health ..read more
Meissner Joseph Palley & Ruggles Inc » Probate Court
1y ago
The Contra Costa probate court remains closed. We work throughout the state of California and are trying to keep things updated as we hear them. With the exception of certain emergency hearings the Contra Costa Superior Court is closed until April 30, 2020. Their press release provided:
The Court has requested authorization from the Chief Justice to continue its
closure through April 30, 2020, and will issue a further release with details as to
what Court operations will resume during any extended closure period.
Here is a link to the complete document if you want to read mor ..read more