Our Estate Planning Services
We help clients secure their assets and provide for loved ones through comprehensive estate planning. Our cross-disciplinary background ensures your plan is legally solid, tax-efficient, and tailored to your financial goals.
Trust Establishment
Create robust trusts to manage your assets, minimize estate taxes, and avoid lengthy probate proceedings.
- Revocable Living Trusts: Maintain control of your assets with flexibility and privacy.
- Irrevocable Trusts: Protect assets from creditors or facilitate tax planning.
- Business Succession Trusts: Structure seamless transitions for closely held companies.
Will Preparation
Clearly communicate your wishes for your estate with legally sound will documents designed to minimize disputes among beneficiaries.
- Standard and Pour-Over Wills
- Asset-specific directives
- Guardianship appointments for minor children
Powers of Attorney & Directives
Prepare for incapacity scenarios by appointing trusted individuals to manage medical and financial decisions on your behalf.
- Powers of Attorney (financial/legal)
- Advance Healthcare Directives
- Coordination with trust structures
Who We Help
Business Owners
Protect your company’s future and structure succession to minimize tax and disruptions.
Protect your company’s future and structure succession to minimize tax and disruptions.
Highly Compensated Families
Preserve generational wealth, optimize estate and inheritance taxes, and prevent family disputes.
Preserve generational wealth, optimize estate and inheritance taxes, and prevent family disputes.
Property Investors
Ensure real estate holdings transfer smoothly to the next generation and avoid probate delays.
Ensure real estate holdings transfer smoothly to the next generation and avoid probate delays.
Blended and Multigenerational Families
Navigate complex family structures, meet unique estate needs, and respect everyone’s interests.
Navigate complex family structures, meet unique estate needs, and respect everyone’s interests.
How to Begin Your Estate Planning Journey
Estate planning is a personal process. Here’s how to get started and what you can expect when you work with us.
- Schedule an Introductory Consultation — Reach out by phone or email for an initial discussion. We’ll explain the process and answer preliminary questions.
- Gather Key Information — Collect current documents (trusts, wills, property deeds), a list of assets, and details of interests in businesses or investments.
- Define Your Goals — Consider family and business priorities, special needs, charitable intentions, and any concerns about taxes, probate, or privacy.
- Collaborative Planning — We design a strategy leveraging legal, tax, and financial planning perspectives unique to your circumstances.
- Formalize Your Plan — We draft, review, and execute documents—ensuring clarity, accuracy, and full compliance with California law.
Choosing the Right Estate Planning Option
Selecting the best tools—trusts, wills, or both—depends on your assets, goals, and family structure. We help you weigh options such as:
- Using revocable trusts to avoid probate and ensure privacy
- Employing irrevocable trusts for protection or complex tax scenarios
- Coordinating wills with trust structures to capture all assets
- Including business succession or special needs provisions
During your consultation, we discuss which approach suits your estate and address questions about tax consequences, funding trusts, and keeping plans up to date.
About Richard S. Case & the Practice
Richard S. Case brings a uniquely broad perspective to estate planning, combining the roles of Attorney at Law, Certified Public Accountant (CPA), and Certified Financial Planner (CFP®). This multidisciplinary expertise means your estate plan benefits from integrated legal, tax, and financial foresight—essential for business owners and affluent families with complex needs.
- Active member of the California State Bar since December 2011
License #278575 (Active through 2026) - Licensed CPA (California Board of Accountancy, since 1989)
- Certified Financial Planner, experienced in portfolios and retirement strategies
Richard focuses on the details that matter—asset protection, legacy preservation and clarity for your beneficiaries—approaching each matter confidentially and with a commitment to excellence.
Scope of Services
- Drafting and implementing living trusts, wills, and powers of attorney
- Integrating advanced tax-minimization strategies in estate plans
- Counseling on family business succession planning
- Designing custom solutions for blended families and special beneficiaries
- Reviewing existing plans for legal compliance and tax efficiency
Checklist: Preparing for Your Consultation
- Inventory of all your assets, including real estate, investments, business interests, retirement accounts, and valuables
- List of intended beneficiaries and alternate choices
- Copies of previous wills, trusts, or business succession agreements
- Questions or concerns about taxes, succession, or unique family circumstances
Advance preparation helps ensure your estate plan is comprehensive and tailored to your specific needs.
Frequently Asked Questions
What’s the difference between a will and a trust?
A will indicates how your assets should be distributed after your passing and goes through the probate process, which can be lengthy and public. A trust manages assets both during your lifetime and after, often enabling a private, probate-free transfer.
How do trusts minimize estate taxes?
Properly structured trusts can shift assets out of your taxable estate, take advantage of deductions, and implement advanced tax strategies suited to your situation as reviewed by a CPA.
When should I update my estate plan?
Major life events (e.g., marriage, divorce, birth, death, business sale/acquisition) or changes in law and asset structure are key times. We recommend reviewing your plan at least every three to five years.
Can a power of attorney protect me in case of incapacity?
Yes. Powers of attorney and advance healthcare directives specify trusted individuals to manage financial and medical decisions if you become incapacitated, preventing court-appointed conservatorship.
What unique advantages come from using an attorney who is also a CPA and CFP?
A practitioner with these credentials unites legal protection, tax efficiency, and sound financial planning—providing a comprehensive plan that avoids gaps, maximizes advantages, and accounts for complex assets or business holdings.
Is there a minimum asset threshold to benefit from trusts?
While high-value and complex estates see the greatest benefit, nearly anyone wishing to keep assets out of probate or tailor distributions to specific goals may benefit. Consultation can clarify what’s right for you.
Contact Us
- Phone:
- +1 (909) 614-1474
- Email:
- info@casetry.com
- Document:
- LAW OFFICES OF RICHARD S. CASE, A PROFESSIONAL CORPORATION