Yesterday we had the pleasure of meeting with a client who just found out they have to go through Probate in California. After inheriting his parent's house years ago he has been renting it out for a while. He was under the impression that his parents had prepared and filed all the necessary paperwork. Unfortunately, after trying to sell the property and talking with several title companies he was stunned to find out that he will have to file a petition for Probate in Compton California.
In an effort to save money he thought he would hire a paralegal. After helping so many clients sell property through PROBATE, we have found that not all paralegals possess the knowledge to help you file and close your probate case. As with many attorneys, many paralegals eat from the whole buffet. Meaning they work in several areas such as bankruptcy, auto law, criminal law etc. Probate is such rare species that choosing an Attorney or paralegal that does not specialize in probate can cost you a lot of wasted time, money and frustration.
In the case of our client Jerome, he paid a paralegal $2500 twenty-five hundred dollars up front to process his case. Jerome also told us he didn't understand why he had to appear in Probate Court, "Isn't that what I Hired the paralegal for?". When his court date came he appeared only to have the Judge tell him he was missing several documents and that he would need to start all over again. He confronted the paralegal only to learn that he had little to no knowledge of probate law in California.
A few days later Jerome reached out to us at the Orozco Group. We were able to answer all of his questions and pair him with the appropriate Estate Planning Attorney that would best fit for him. Once our client is appointed we will help him sell the property in the Estate. We love helping our clients navigate the probate process in California.
If you or someone you know may have to go through Probate in California please call us at (949) 485-9427 or email us at orozcogroup1@gmail.com for a friendly conversation on how we can help you.