I recently met with Olga Alvarez, Estate Planning attorney and partner at Heisner Alvarez Attorneys at Law.
I met Olga through the Lawyers Club of San Diego, she is a past President of this specialty Bar Association committed to the advancement of women in the law and society.
Olga is very respected in the legal and humanitarian community and has won numerous awards for not only her legal work, but her commitment to Women in Law as well as Diversity and Inclusion. There are so many awards that she has received that I will just list a few below.
Olga has a unique perspective on Estate Planning since not only does she draft legal documents such as Wills and Living Trusts, but she also litigates Trusts and helps people through probate so she knows what happens if documents don’t get drafted properly or if there are no estate planning documents in place.
After we got through catching up personally and updating each other and talk about how wonderful our kids are, I asked her to share with me some top estate planning tips she would want me to pass on to our clients. Here are 5 things Olga said you should review before the end of the year.
- Review your Will or Trust. Read through it yourself and see if any changes need to be made and confirm you understand it. If you need updates made reach out to your original attorney, Olga or us if you need a referral to someone in your area.
- Make sure you have current Healthcare Directives and if you are in California make sure they are approved for California, or the state you live in.
- If you have young adult children make sure you have a Power of Attorney, signed HIPPA authorization and Healthcare Directives to allow you to make financial and medical decisions for your child, and to get medical information about them if needed. This is super important to get this done before your kids go off to college or move out of the house.
- Make sure you understand your Net Worth, meaning what you Own (assets) and Owe (liabilities) and have an up to date document that lists this out, also known as a Net Worth statement.
- Confirm you have enough Life Insurance to cover your mortgage, debts, replace your income and perhaps to pay of your children’s college debt should you pass away before helping them pay for college.
Rated AV®-Preeminent™ by Martindale-Hubbell - 2019 Super Lawyer - Top 50 lawyers in the 2017 San Diego Super Lawyers List, - Service to Diversity Award of 2016 by the San Diego County Bar Association -Women Who Mean Business award winner by the San Diego Business Journal - San Diego Business Journal’s “Best of the Bar” designation in the areas of trusts, estate, probate and business for the past three years - named a Top Attorney in Trusts and Estates by the San Diego Daily Transcript in 2015 and 2012 - one of San Diego’s Best Attorneys in 2015 and 2013 by San Diego Metro Magazine - San Diego Magazine’s Top Attorney in 2017, 2018, and 2019 - San Diego Magazine Selects Olga as Finalist for Latino Impact Awards
Olga is a Certified Legal Specialist in Estate Planning, Trust & Probate Law by the State Bar of California, Board of Legal Specialization. She focuses her practice on preserving and protecting assets for all clients, including both high net worth individuals and middle-income families where long-term health care costs exhaust the corpus of the estate. Olga has also successfully litigated both trust and probate disputes, and has administered complex trusts that include business entities and foreign beneficiaries. She represents financial institutions, private fiduciaries, business owners, and beneficiaries.
Olga can be reached at 858-454-0142 or oalvarez@heisneralvarez.com
And you can visit her website at www.HeisnerAlvarez.com
Heisner Álvarez, APC 7825 Fay Avenue, Suite 220 La Jolla, CA 92037
Legal services are not offered by WCG Wealth Advisors, Bair Financial Planning, LPL Financial or affiliated advisors. We suggest that you discuss your specific situation with a qualified legal advisor.
WCG Wealth Advisors, Bair Financial Planning, and LPL Financial are not affiliated with Heisner Alvarez Attorneys.