Wills and Trusts
Every adult should have an Estate Plan, regardless of how large or small their estate is. Estate Planning achieves several different goals, all accomplished by different components of a well-crafted Estate Plan. Many clients come into our office saying “I need a Will,” without understanding how little protection a Will offers to their estate. At Bezaire, Ledwitz & Associates, we create Estate Plans for our clients; a collection of documents that work together to protect an estate from Probate, taxes, and uncertainty.
Many clients believe that a Will, standing alone, is sufficient to prevent their surviving family members and other heirs from dealing with Probate.
This is not true—a will must be probated!
…A typical Estate Plan includes a Living Trust, which helps your estate avoid Probate and directs the disposition of your assets when you have passed away. Durable Powers of Attorney authorize who will act on your behalf if you are incapacitated, and an Advance Health Care Directive ensures that your wishes are carried out in case of illness or accident.
Bezaire, Ledwitz & Associates offers comprehensive Estate Planning services, including the following:
- Trusts and Living trusts to hold and/or manage your assets.
- Wills, which can serve as a “back-up” document to Living Trusts.
- Durable Powers of Attorney.
- Advance Health Care Directives.
- Healthcare Document-on-Demand system (Docu-Bank).
- HIPAA/CMIA medical record release and authorizations.
- Guardianship designations.
…many clients believe that a Will, standing alone, is sufficient to prevent their surviving family members and other heirs from dealing with Probate. This is not true…
As referenced above, many clients believe that a Will, standing alone, is sufficient to prevent their surviving family members and other heirs from dealing with Probate. This is not true—a will must be probated! All types of families will benefit from the careful use of different kinds of Trusts to hold title to their assets, make sure they are properly managed for the beneficiaries, keep those assets out of Probate Court and reduce taxes.
Practice Areas
Estate Planning
Estate planning is the process of establishing a Trust, Will, Durable Power of Attorney, and other related documents during your lifetime.
Estate Administration
Probate
Probate is the legal proceeding supervised by the Superior Court used to transfer title to assets when a person is deceased.
Estate Litigation
Advanced Estate Planning
Families with substantial estates require additional strategies beyond a typical Estate Plan to reduce and offset Estate Tax liabilities.
Conservatorship
Our Locations
The quickest way to get assistance is to contact us directly at 310-316-2400 or by emailing us at info@ledwitzlaw.com.
Life Events
New Families
Nearing Retirement
Recent Loss
Recent Blogs
Spring 2014 Newsletter
Portability Explained Preserving Estate Tax Exemptions for Married Couples.
You’ve Been Named Successor Trustee – What Does That Mean?
FREE SEMINAR – SUCCESSOR TRUSTEE DUTIES – Wednesday April 9, 2014 at 2:00 p.m 970 W. 190TH STREET, TORRANCE, CA 90502
Spotlight: Accident Law, The Most Important Thing You Can Do Before Your Accident By James L. Pocrass, Esq. Pocrass & De Los Reyes LLP
WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU REVIEWED YOUR TRUST? WE OFFER FREE THREE YEAR REVIEWS!
What is a 1035 Exchange?
A 1035 exchange is a provision in the tax code that most people have not heard about. It allows for the direct exchange of accumulated funds in a life insurance policy or annuity for another life insurance policy or annuity without creating a taxable event.
Using an A-B Trust to Control your Assets
When there is a blended family with children from multiple marriages, special considerations should be placed into the estate plan.
Without proper planning, the surviving spouse could be left without the means to provide for him or herself. Additionally, we also see lopsided distributions, which typically result in one spouses children suing the others.
Client Reviews
Very professional service 
bajabltz23:07 27 Nov 24 Ready to do business and handle any trust issues. mary grimes06:15 09 Jun 22 I’ve dealt with 3 different lawyers in regards to my will, my trust. and my LLCI’ve spent... thousands of dollars.This is by far the best experience I’ve had, he’s handling all that, eliminating the LLC, putting my houses back in my name, he’s fair and has a great attitude.I don’t have to go to another lawyer again!read moreRed Castro06:58 31 May 22 Super friendly and helpful staff. Felt confident with their services from the start. Roxanne Ramirez18:14 07 May 22 Samuel Ledwitz has been my attorney for years. Friendly, knowledgeable and accessible. mary emily smiley06:43 06 Mar 22 I am so pleased with everything about this law firm. Thank you Attorney Ledwitz for all your help... and information. Creating my Trust with your firm was a great experience and done in a timely manner. I will highly recommend your business to anyone. Once again, THANK YOU!read moreJenniffeir Suarez03:48 14 Jan 22 I heard about this firm through a friend of mine and decided to make an appointment to see them.I... was so impressed with how confidant and comfortable I felt putting my case in their hands.read moreMercedes Morales21:01 19 Oct 21 Thank you Sam for all your help! Desiree Gasca18:41 19 Oct 21 By Darren Chaker: Having dealt with San Diego attorneys too long, I was happy to accompany a friend... there office to update a trust. The staff was very professional, attorneys could articulate a response for any question posed. Definitely talented attorneys.read moreDarren Chaker17:40 20 Oct 20 My wife and I completed our Estate Planning from The Law Firm of Bezaire. we were thinking about... having our estate planning done from last couple of years and it's all done .. Thanks to The Law Firm of Bezaire!!read moreVerna Gonzalez19:15 12 Dec 19 We got our trust restated The Law Firm of Bezaire and we are very satisfied with the service we... have received. They answered all of our questions quickly and made this process easy for us. We would definitely recommend this firm to our friends and families. Thank you!read moreGloria Smith17:43 22 Nov 19 Fantastic firm! Richard Knapp02:52 10 Jul 19 The people there are just plain friendly and helpful. Couldn't get better service Jill Gilliam20:54 25 Apr 19 I was referred by a very close family friend to Bezaire, Ledwitz and Associates to do my... Grandmother's Will and have me act as Power of Attorney for my Grandmother quite a few years back. Every time we needed legal assistance, the staff has always been professional and The Law Firm of Bezaire accommodating and because of this, I have always recommended their firm to others as wellread moreBryan C. Carrington09:05 13 Feb 19 We’ve dealt with Bezaire, Ledwitz and Associates on numerous occasions for Estate Planning matters... and have been very happy with their services and friendly manner. They helped us with family estates, real estate and is our first choice for the updating of our wills in the near future. I strongly recommend them.read moreJames D. Barker09:36 12 Feb 19 My family and I have dealt with The Law Firm of Bezaire, Ledwitz and Associates numerous times for... Estate Planning matters - always finding them compassionate, approachable, and knowledgeable. I highly recommend them.read moreJack N. Goulet04:24 12 Feb 19 The Law Firm of Bezaire did a last-minute will for my mother with very little advance notice. The... staff did a fantastic job!read moreLathen Cheas04:20 12 Feb 19 only the best says it all !!! VERY happy with Mr. Samuel Ledwitz esq. and staff.Now I have peace... of mind thank-you .read moreWillow Jones-Heger22:46 07 Jan 19 We had a great experience dealing with Samuel Ledwitz when it was time to revise and update our... family trust and legal documents. We feel very confident that we are in very good hands, and that our estate and our legal affairs will be handled with the utmost professional and personal care. Highly recommended.read moreAnn Imberman21:42 22 Aug 18 I was very happy with how my estate planning was handled by Sam Ledwitz & Associates. I would... highly recommend this firm.read moreandrea mitchell21:55 19 Jan 18
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