In July 1995, the California legislature revised portions of the California
Probate Code defining the investment duties of trustees.
Previously, some investment rules were rigid and absolute, preventing trustees
from making the same type of investment decisions that regular investors make
every day. Some types of investments were flatly prohibited, while others were
available only at personal risk to the [...]

In Mid-April 1996, I learned that the executive
committee of the Alameda County Bar Association has voted to oppose informal
probate administration. I believe this is a mistake and that attorneys should
embrace informal administration. (I have also heard through the "grapevine" that
the State Bar committee may also have decided to drop its proposal.)
What Is Informal Probate Administration? [...]

Before you hire a probate attorney, you should recognize that the "statutory
probate fees" set out in Caifornia’s Probate Code are not mandatory fees, and
most attorneys will negotiate a lower fee.
California Probate Code Section 10810 provides that "for ordinary services
the attorney for the personal representative shall receive compensation based on
the value of the estate accounted for [...]

The "estate tax" (also called an inheritance tax or death tax) is a special
tax on property left by a deceased person. In the U.S., there are separate
federal and state estate taxes, but most state death taxes, including
California’s, can be claimed as a credit against the federal estate tax. The
overall estate tax rate thus remains uniform [...]