For years estate planners have been extolling the virtues of a revocable trust primarily to avoid the need for a probate of a decedent’s estate.  Now we have another reason to recommend a revocable trust to our client: the number of probate filing fees have significantly increased.
A provision of 2008’s Filing Fees legislation has significantly increased the number of probate filing fees for many probate proceedings.
This legislature has significantly reduced the number of exemptions for papers filed by personal representatives after issuance of letters.  Government Code Section 70658(a) now applies to fourteen specific petitions, including filings relating to allowance of compensation, settlement of accounts, sale or exchange of estate property, and preliminary and final distributions.  The legislation increased the filing fees for these and other papers filed after the issuance of letters from $180 to $355.
This legislation is in response to the Court of Appeal decision in Estate of Claeyssens, 161 Cal.App.4th 465, 74 Cal.Rptr.3d 304 (2008). This case invalidated the graduated probate filing fee as a violation of Proposition 6. Proposition 6 repealed the inheritance tax in 1982.
The costs of administering a probate (exclusive of executor fees and attorney fees) may now exceed the cost of a revocable trust.
If you have questions regarding how you can avoid probate, please contact our Estate Planning Department.
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