John A. Hartog recognized as “Best Lawyer of the Year, 2020” for work in Trusts and Estates and Trusts and Estates Litigation.

High property values in California highlight the need for careful property tax planning. If you have owned your property for many years, it is likely that your property's assessed value for property tax purposes is significantly lower than today's fair market value. If your property should be reassessed, you or your family members could be faced with a significant increase in the annual property tax.

If you practice in parts of the United States where wealth is more concentrated, such as New York, Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area, you may very well have clients with taxable estates.

The Validity of a trust amendment was at issue in the recent Haggerty v. Thornton opinion from the California Supreme Court, which resolved a split of authority among the California Circuit Courts.