- Divorce
- Adoption
- GuardianshipImportantly, guardianship comes in two flavors: Physical custody is one kind of guardianship. This is a guardianship of a person. The other is guardianship of the estate. This is a guardian in charge of the money. Courts generally separate these two responsibilities, and you may wish to separate them in your estate plan.
- Juvenile CrimesGraduating from Santa Clara University School of Law, Winston received a CALI Award in Juvenile Law Seminar, which means he had the highest grade in the class. Before joining the CunninghamLegal team, he worked at several prestigious law firms in the Bay Area and completed an internship with the Northern California Innocence Project. Always seeking ways to help people, he also interned in a division of the Santa Clara County Public Defender’s office that concentrated exclusively in juvenile delinquency. It was a position that allowed him to help “steer kids in the right direction and to learn from their mistakes.” His B.A. was in Political Science (Law and Politics) from Marquette University. With a deep interest in helping children and families, he also has a strong background in family law.
- Corporate LawRachelle is well-traveled as a person and as a lawyer. She grew up in the Midwest, received her undergraduate degree in English Literature from Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri, and studied a summer in Spain. She moved to California to pursue and complete her JD at the University of San Diego. Following law school, she joined a San Diego firm and gained experience in Estate Planning, Corporate Formation, Business Law, and Tax Law. Rachelle’s marriage to a Naval aviator took her on further adventures, including a year serving as a prosecutor for the Guam Attorney General and passing the Virginia Bar while residing in Norfolk, VA.
- Business Disputes
- Limited Liability CompaniesWealthy families have long benefitted from the creation of Family Limited Partnerships (FLP) and Family Limited Liability Companies (FLLC). Assets are gifted into these entities, and shares are transferred to family members, such as children, while you keep control. For Gift Tax purposes, the value of the gift itself can be reduced under law because of the shares that are gifted cannot be sold and the holder of the shares cannot demand that income be distributed to them. LLCs can be effectively “daisy-chained†across generations to control tax consequences—a complex subject worthy of book-length discussion, but a possibility your family may wish to investigate deeply.
- Real Estate LitigationIn one example above, I mentioned the case of Ann and Mike, and the possibility of our firm maintaining continuity in their family’s complex real estate matters when they pass away.
- Real Estate TransactionsDo I need a broker if I already have a buyer? How do I give or sell a house to a child? How do I sell a commercial building or apartment to a tenant or to another company? Are there lawyers for complicated, known-buyer real estate transactions? Are there lawyers for simple real estate transactions in California? Complete real estate transfer service at CunninghamLegal.
- Social Security DisabilityAlleviating your concerns about protecting your child’s eligibility for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and other government benefits including Medi-Cal and the rigorous qualification requirements of Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI)
- Estate PlanningAttorney Diego Alvarez-Miranda is an extremely caring and professional Estate Planning Lawyer. He’s known as an active listener, offering a welcome ear to the special concerns of all his clients—while deploying remarkable skills for ironing out difficulties.
- WillsThe job of Trustee is a weighty one, and you must either educate yourself deeply in how to administer a trust in California, or hire a firm like ours to administer the trust for you. If, for example, you have now lost both your parents and you have siblings, it will be vital to do everything in your power to be fair and equitable to every beneficiary of your parents’ estate, as well as follow the terms of the Will and Trust—and do your best to prevent friction and misunderstanding among heirs. Indeed, you may be legally liable for errors and omissions in your administration of the trust.
- TrustsShe tells the story of some young clients who had lost their mother very suddenly. “There was no living trust and I represented them through the probate court process,” she recounts. “They told me later that I was able to make the overwhelmingly emotional process much easier for them and that they really appreciated my responsiveness via constant texting and calling. They made a point of telling me the whole experience was much less painful because of what I was able to do for them.”
- Power of AttorneyA power of attorney that allows a trusted person (an “agent”) to take care of financial matters while the principal (the person signing the Power of Attorney) is alive. This may become effective immediately upon signing, or upon a physician’s statement. This document does not terminate upon the incapacity of the person making the power of attorney.
- ProbateAttorney Janice Lee Shen is a Certified Specialist in Estate, Trust, and Probate Law. She dedicates herself to helping clients overcome obstacles. Often when those clients have become the Trustees for the estate of loved ones, and sometimes because they have to head to probate court.
- Bankruptcy
- Tax LawWinston Duggan and our full team of attorneys can help you with advanced Estate & Tax Planning from any of our offices throughout Northern and Southern California. We offer in-person, phone, and Zoom appointments. Request an appointment online or call (866) 988-3956.