Three Common Myths About Estate Planning

Three Common Myths About Estate Planning

There are a lot of reasons people drag their feet on creating an estate plan. Many of my clients tell me they’ve meant to “get this done” for some time. But there are also people out there who think they don’t need anything, or at least not yet. Sometimes they’re...
What Happens if I Can’t Find the Will?

What Happens if I Can’t Find the Will?

I have had several cases where my client had trouble locating the decedent’s (a.k.a. deceased person’s) Will and or trust. So naturally, this caused them some concern, and the question arose: What happens if I can’t find the Will? Before you panic,...
How Long Does Copyright Last?

How Long Does Copyright Last?

I recently did a Q&A session with the delightful Fremont Area Writers Club, which had many thoughtful and interesting literary law questions. But, unfortunately, there was one question that we ran out of time for: How long does copyright last? It’s a great...
Three Reasons a Trust Won’t Avoid Probate

Three Reasons a Trust Won’t Avoid Probate

For most people, one of the biggest reasons to have a trust is to avoid probate. For those who don’t know what probate is, probate is when the government oversees the administration of a deceased person’s (or decedent’s) estate. Probate is time-consuming,...
De Minimis Use in Copyright Law

De Minimis Use in Copyright Law

Can I Use This Song, Video, Picture, etc It If I Only Take a Little Bit? Also known as, let’s talk about de minimus use in copyright law. Whenever I talk about copyright law, I inevitably get asked, “Is it okay if I only use _____% of a [song/movie/book]?”...