Estimated read time: ~5 minutes. For years, everyone asked Elaine the questions. Where is the insurance card? Which cousin is hosting Thanksgiving? Did Dad’s old life insurance policy ever get closed? Who has the spare key? What was the name of the plumber? Did she want the lemon tree trimmed back or left alone? Elaine always knew. That was her role in the family. She was the keeper of names, dates, bills, passwords, recipes, grudges, birthdays, and backup plans. … [Read more...] about The Day Mom Couldn’t Answer
Black Wealth
A Five Star Review to Remember
Our latest client Regina Zeigler didn’t leave a five-star review because someone was “nice.” She left it because she felt relief—the kind you only feel when you realize you didn’t just buy documents… you bought certainty. Here’s what Regina wrote: “I am so glad that several years ago I set up my Estate Plan with Attorney Collins and her Collins Law Group. They are comprehensive, attentive, thoughtful and more. In setting up my estate plan they take time to ask enough questions to … [Read more...] about A Five Star Review to Remember
Remembering Jesse Jackson
A Life of Faith, Courage, and Forward Motion This morning, we pause with reverence. The Reverend Jesse Jackson has passed from this life, and with him a generation’s living memory of marches, sermons, negotiations, and unrelenting moral appeal. He was not simply a witness to history. He was one of its steady hands. Born in 1941 in Greenville, South Carolina, Jackson entered a segregated America that had already drawn lines around his future. Yet even as a young man, he believed … [Read more...] about Remembering Jesse Jackson
Dr. King’s Dream Didn’t End With a Speech; It Lives in the Legacy You Protect
On Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the country often reaches for the same handful of quotes—beautiful, familiar, and safe. But Dr. King didn’t live safely. He lived urgently. He spoke with moral clarity that costs you comfort. And he asked America to do something harder than “remember”: he asked us to build. King understood that justice isn’t an idea you admire. It’s a structure you design. It’s the difference between a promise and a plan. It’s the work of making sure the people you love are … [Read more...] about Dr. King’s Dream Didn’t End With a Speech; It Lives in the Legacy You Protect
Reverse Mortgage, No Trust: How Families Lose the Home They Worked a Lifetime For
On a cool December evening in Inglewood, the Lopez family gathered around the dining table with a stack of papers and a knot in their stomachs. For years, Grandma Rosa told her kids, “When I’m gone, this house will give you a little breathing room. Pay off a few bills. Help the grandkids get started.” She didn’t promise four years of tuition and a dorm room. She talked about something much more real: a cushion. A little help with credit cards. Maybe a semester or two at community college, some … [Read more...] about Reverse Mortgage, No Trust: How Families Lose the Home They Worked a Lifetime For
Men, Alzheimer’s, and the Hand-Off That Protects Your Wife, Your Home, and Your Dignity
Here’s the quiet reality most men don’t talk about: when memory slips, the bills don’t. The mortgage won’t pause, the insurance company won’t wait, and your wife—already carrying the emotional load—suddenly becomes CFO, COO, and nurse. A revocable living trust is how you lighten that load now and stage a clean hand-off later. You stay fully in charge while you’re well; then, when you can’t—or when you’re gone—your successor trustee steps in with authority, instructions, and a checklist you … [Read more...] about Men, Alzheimer’s, and the Hand-Off That Protects Your Wife, Your Home, and Your Dignity
Trusts, Taxes, and Cyber Safety—Featuring Tereina Stidd, the new Director of Education for the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys
Pictured above with Tereina Stidd, The new Director of Education for the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys; Attorney Collins spent the Fall Summit in the main engine room of modern planning: where trust design, tax policy, and cybersecurity converge into the real-life decisions families make under pressure. The tone of the weekend was unmistakable: practical, surgical, and focused on what works when memories fade, markets swing, and inboxes get hacked. Field-tested playbooks ready … [Read more...] about Trusts, Taxes, and Cyber Safety—Featuring Tereina Stidd, the new Director of Education for the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys
Young Parents, Big Decisions: Why Your Will (and Trust) Can’t Wait
Estimated read time: 6 minutes When you’re raising kids, estate planning feels like something for “later.” Between daycare pickups, pediatric appointments, and trying to get everyone to sleep on time, it’s easy to push a will to the bottom of the list. Yet for young parents, a will is not optional—it’s how you decide who would raise your children if something happened to you. Without it, a judge decides. Full stop. The latest Caring.com survey found that only 24% of Americans have a will, and … [Read more...] about Young Parents, Big Decisions: Why Your Will (and Trust) Can’t Wait
Divorce + Your Estate Plan in California: Close the Gaps, Protect Your Future, and Redirect Your Legacy (Including Smart Charitable Moves)
Estimated time to read ⏱️ A finalized divorce does not finish your planning. California law revokes some—but not all—references to an ex. Federal rules can override state protections. Old beneficiary forms can send six figures to the wrong person. And unless you update your decision-makers, a medical crisis can leave the wrong person—or no one—legally in charge. If you want full control over who inherits, who decides, and what impact your wealth makes, you have to refresh your plan, … [Read more...] about Divorce + Your Estate Plan in California: Close the Gaps, Protect Your Future, and Redirect Your Legacy (Including Smart Charitable Moves)
The Estate Plan That Wasn’t: Steve McNair’s Tragedy—and the Wake-Up Call for Every California Family
Estimated read time: 7–8 minutes You don’t plan for a headline. You plan so your family never becomes one. That’s the gut punch of former NFL quarterback Steve McNair’s story. When he was killed in 2009, there was no will. No trust. No roadmap. The result was a public, painful probate, heavy taxes, and family conflict that still makes people wince. You don’t need celebrity money to feel those consequences—any California family without a plan is one accident away from the same confusion. If … [Read more...] about The Estate Plan That Wasn’t: Steve McNair’s Tragedy—and the Wake-Up Call for Every California Family
