Plans that grow with your family. Care when it matters most.

Yes. Stephanie Farzam offers concierge estate planning throughout Los Angeles, traveling to clients' homes for consultations and document signings. This is standard service, not a premium add-on.

Yes. Ms. Farzam regularly conducts signings at skilled nursing facilities, assisted living communities, and hospitals across Los Angeles County. Care-facility signings require coordinating with staff on timing and witness availability, which she handles directly.

Mobility should not prevent someone from having a valid estate plan. Ms. Farzam conducts the full process — consultation, review, and signing — at your parent's residence or care facility, so no travel is required at any stage.

Yes. Notarization and witness coordination are arranged as part of the concierge signing, so the documents are properly executed on the spot rather than leaving you to arrange a notary separately afterward.

It depends on whether they have legal capacity at the time of signing, which is assessed individually rather than by diagnosis. Some people with early-stage cognitive decline retain capacity to execute estate planning documents. Ms. Farzam evaluates this carefully during the consultation and will tell you directly if planning is no longer an option, in which case a conservatorship may be the remaining path.

Yes. This is a common situation. Ms. Farzam can meet with your parent locally in Los Angeles while keeping you involved by phone or video, so distance does not prevent you from participating in the process.

It depends on the size of your estate and whether you want to avoid probate. In California, estates above the current statutory small-estate threshold generally go through probate without a funded trust — which is often the deciding factor. This is one of the first things we work out together.

Funding a trust means retitling your assets — real property, bank accounts, investment accounts — into the trust's name. An unfunded trust is one of the most common and costly estate planning failures: the document exists, but the assets still have to go through probate. Ms. Farzam handles funding as part of the engagement rather than leaving it to the client.

A properly funded revocable living trust generally allows assets to pass to beneficiaries without court-supervised probate. The key word is funded — assets left titled in your individual name may still require probate even if a trust document exists.

A typical plan includes a revocable living trust, a pour-over will, a durable power of attorney for finances, an advance health care directive, and the deeds and transfer documents needed to fund the trust. The right combination depends on your assets and family structure.

Yes. A revocable living trust can be amended or fully restated during your lifetime. Marriage, divorce, a new child or grandchild, a property purchase, or a change in who you want serving as trustee are all common reasons to revisit a plan.

Real property titled solely in your name typically must pass through probate, a court-supervised process that is public and can take many months. If you also have no will, California intestacy law determines who inherits, which may not match your intentions.

Yes, and the stakes are higher. California intestacy law does not provide for unmarried partners, so without a properly drafted plan a surviving partner may inherit nothing regardless of how long the relationship lasted.

Online templates can produce a valid document, but they do not fund the trust, catch title problems, or account for community property, blended families, or special circumstances. The most common issue attorneys see with online plans is an unfunded trust — the paperwork exists, but the assets still require probate.

Blended families require careful drafting so a surviving spouse is provided for without unintentionally disinheriting children from a prior marriage. This usually involves specific trust structures rather than a simple outright distribution, and it is one of the situations where template documents most often fail.

Guardianship nominations are made in your will, and the court gives significant weight to a parent's stated preference. Naming a guardian is often the single most important reason for young parents to complete an estate plan, regardless of the size of their estate.

A transfer into your own revocable living trust generally does not trigger reassessment, because you remain the beneficial owner. Transfers to other people, including children, involve separate rules that changed significantly under Proposition 19, and should be reviewed before any deed is recorded.

Yes. Business interests need to be coordinated with your trust and with any operating or partnership agreements, which may contain their own transfer restrictions. Without that coordination, a business can end up in probate even when the rest of the estate avoids it.

A revocable trust can be changed or revoked during your lifetime and is the standard tool for avoiding probate. An irrevocable trust generally cannot be altered once established, but may offer tax or asset protection advantages in specific situations. Most families are best served by a revocable trust.

Start with the statutory notice requirements — beneficiaries and heirs generally need to be notified within the period set by California law. From there, we map out funding, accounting, and distribution obligations specific to the trust you're administering.

A trustee owes fiduciary duties to the beneficiaries, including duties of loyalty, impartiality, prudent management, and accounting. Trustees can be held personally liable for breaches, which is why guidance matters even when the trust seems straightforward.

Yes. A trustee who mismanages assets, fails to account properly, or favors one beneficiary over another can face personal liability. Most such problems are avoidable with proper procedure from the start.

Generally no. A key advantage of a trust is that administration happens privately, outside court supervision. Court involvement typically arises only if there is a dispute or a petition for instructions becomes necessary.

Yes. No one is required to accept the role. If you decline, the trust document typically names an alternate successor. It is better to decline at the outset than to accept and then step down mid-administration, which creates additional complications.

Straightforward trust administrations often conclude within several months to a year, depending on whether real property must be sold, how many beneficiaries are involved, and whether final tax returns are required. Disputes extend the timeline considerably.

Trustees are generally entitled to reasonable compensation unless the trust document says otherwise. What counts as reasonable depends on the work involved and the size and complexity of the trust. Family members sometimes waive compensation, though they are not required to.

Clear communication and proper accounting resolve most beneficiary concerns before they escalate. Where a genuine disagreement remains, a trustee can petition the court for instructions, which provides direction and helps protect the trustee from later claims.

Timelines vary with the size of the estate, the court's calendar, and whether anyone contests. Simplified procedures for smaller estates move considerably faster than formal probate. Ms. Farzam can give you a realistic estimate once she reviews the specifics.

Often yes. A will does not avoid probate — it directs how the estate is distributed within the probate process. Avoiding probate generally requires a funded trust or another non-probate transfer mechanism.

California sets statutory attorney and executor fees for formal probate based on a percentage of the estate's gross value, plus court filing costs and potential extraordinary fees. Because fees are calculated on gross value rather than equity, a mortgaged home can generate substantial fees.

California provides simplified procedures for estates below the current statutory threshold, including small estate affidavits for personal property and spousal property petitions. Whether you qualify depends on the value and type of assets involved.

Secure the original estate planning documents, obtain several certified death certificates, and avoid distributing or selling assets before confirming what authority you actually have. An early consultation can prevent steps that are difficult to undo later.

The estate passes under California's intestate succession laws, which set a fixed order of inheritance based on surviving relatives and whether property is community or separate. The court also appoints an administrator, who may not be the person the decedent would have chosen.

Reasonable funeral and burial expenses are generally reimbursable from estate assets, and they hold priority in the order of claims. Keep detailed receipts, and confirm the process before paying substantial amounts personally.

Out-of-state real property typically requires a separate ancillary probate in that state, in addition to California proceedings. This is one of the clearest arguments for a funded trust, which generally avoids multiple probates entirely.

Yes, on grounds such as lack of capacity, undue influence, fraud, or improper execution, and within strict statutory deadlines. Well-drafted documents and careful execution procedures substantially reduce the likelihood of a successful challenge.

A rough list of your assets and roughly what each is worth, any existing estate planning documents, deeds to real property, and your thoughts on who you would want as trustee, executor, and guardian for minor children. Nothing needs to be finalized beforehand.

Yes. Consultations can be handled by phone or video when that is more convenient, with the signing itself conducted in person at your home or care facility.

Funding follows: deeds are recorded and accounts are retitled into the trust so the plan is actually in effect. You receive your executed originals, and Ms. Farzam remains available for amendments and questions as your circumstances change.

Review your plan every three to five years, and sooner after a major life event: marriage, divorce, a birth or death in the family, buying or selling property, a significant change in assets, or a move to another state.

Ms. Farzam has worked in trusts and estates for over a decade, beginning as a summer associate in 2015. She graduated from UCLA School of Law in 2018 and has practiced estate planning law continuously since, focusing exclusively on estate planning, trust administration, and probate.

Most estate plans are drafted, reviewed, and signed within two to three weeks of the initial consultation. Because Ms. Farzam works with a limited number of clients at a time, matters move without waiting in a queue.

You work directly with Stephanie Farzam. Your calls and emails go to the attorney who drafted your documents, not to a case manager or rotating associate.

Ms. Farzam serves clients throughout Los Angeles County, including the Westside, the San Fernando Valley, the South Bay, and surrounding communities, with in-home and care-facility visits available.

Initial consultations are used to understand your situation and outline a scope of work before any engagement begins. Fee structure and pricing are discussed directly and confirmed in writing before any representation starts.