Goralka law estate planning holding hands SacramentoHow to Choose Your Trustee or Executor of Your Will 

Above all, you should choose someone you trust, keeping in mind that acting as a trustee or executor can be a complex, thankless and sometimes long-term job.

By: John M. Goralka
Sacramento, CA

Perhaps the most important decision that you can make is the selection of the person to oversee your financial affairs if you are unable to do so. This person is the successor trustee of your trust, the executor in your will and the designated attorney-in-fact in your power of attorney. We will refer to all of these people as the successor trustee in this article. This selection is particularly important when, as is usually the case, the successor trustee may hold broad discretionary powers. Legal title to assets is actually vested in the trustee’s name on behalf of the trust. The trustee manages the trust on behalf of the beneficiaries to carry out the grantor’s purposes for establishing the trust.

Trustee duties

John Goralka is the lead attorney and founder of the Goralka Law Firm, P.C., and is an experienced Sacramento estate planning and tax planning lawyer.

For help in Sacramento with estate planning or tax planning, please contact our office.


Founder of The Goralka Law Firm, John M. Goralka assists business owners, real estate owners and successful families to achieve their enlightened dreams by better protecting their assets, minimizing income and estate tax and resolving messes and transitions to preserve, protect and enhance their legacy. John is one of few California attorneys certified as a Specialist by the State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization in both Taxation and Estate Planning, Trust and Probate.

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