5 Tips to Help Your Child Avoid Dog Bites

When a dog bite occurs, it leads to medical care about one in five times. However, the odds are far more likely for a child to need medical assistance after a dog attack. The reason is that a child’s head, face, and neck are closer to a dog’s mouth, so the bites are more likely to take place in a dangerous area. Here are five tips to help prevent dog bites for your family.

1. Teach your child to let the dog sniff them before petting.
2. Teach your child to avoid dogs that are caring for pups, sleeping, or eating – Dogs are more likely to attack during these vulnerable times.
3. Encourage your child to ask the dog’s owner for permission before attempting to pet it – Even if the dog seems friendly, the owner can alert you if it is prone to snap at strangers.
4. Don’t leave your child alone with a dog, even if it is your family pet.
5. Help your child know what to do around a threatening dog – If a child gets scared when a dog growls, this will only encourage the animal to get more aggressive. It is important to remain calm, back away, and avoid eye contact.

Help if a Member of Your Family Has Been Bitten

If you are accumulating medical bills due to a dog bitting a member of your family, Petrov Law Firm can help. This is one of the forms of personal injury law that we specialize in. Just call 619.344.0360 to speak with one of our San Diego based lawyers, and we can get your California injury settlement started today.

Why Keep Your Estate from Going Through Probate Court

Probate court is a provision set up by each state to assist with succession when a person dies without a will or if they have a last will and testament only. It can really help a person’s family if there was no estate planning in place. However, this can take time and cut into the ultimate amount received due to court fees.

On the other hand, with a little planning, you can bypass probate and get the majority of your assets to your loved ones without the wait and expense. Here are three reasons to take advantage of trusts and other estate provisions that go straight to your beneficiaries.

• They get the money faster – Even if the trustee has instructions on how and when to distribute the money, the only delays would be due to your instructions and not for time spent in court.
• They get more of the money – While you may pay your successor trustee to handle the funds, there is no way to know how much would be used up in court, especially if your loved ones need to hire a lawyer to get your estate.
• No one knows who gets what – Probate court is public record, so everyone knows how much your assets were worth and who they went to. Proper state planning keeps your inheritance private to protect your beneficiaries.

San Diego’s Estate Planning Lawyers

Contact Petrov Law Firm today to get in touch with the area’s top estate planning attorneys. Just call 619.344.0306 to learn more about what we can do for you.

Don’t Make These Blunders When It Comes to Estate Planning

Procrastination is common, especially when what we have to accomplish seems like a giant we need to slay. That can happen when it comes to estate planning. It may seem like a monumental task that is best left for another day. Or you may simply not want to think about your own mortality. However, you don’t want to make one of the three classic blunders regarding this crucial task. Here are three things to avoid:

• Waiting until it is too late – From car accidents to illnesses, there are so many things that could result in a healthy person being tragically taken or incapacitated. You need to have your estate plan in place now, just in case.
• Failing to review your plan after life changes – From a wedding or birth to a divorce or death, you need to review your plan every time you experience a major change in life circumstances. Moving to a new state also counts since your plan with have to reflect state legislation.
• Using a DIY will off the Internet – When you are planning for the future of your family, you don’t want to leave anything to chance. A professional can help ensure that your estate goes to your heirs instead of the government.

Estate Planning Professionals in Southern California

Don’t delay. Get help with your estate plan now. The pros at Petrov Law Firm can help you develop an estate plan from scratch or review and amend an existing plan. Call 619.344.0360 to get started today!

How Having Children Should Impact Your Estate Plan

Having a child is a momentous occasion in the life of a family. Whether this is your first or you have several little ones running around the family home, you have reasons for joy. You also have reasons to revisit your estate plan. Here are some things you may need to change now that you have children in the household.

• Legal guardian planning – No parent wants to think about their child having to go through the loss of a parent at a young age. However, accidents can happen, and the loving thing to do is to be prepared. That means assigning guardianship of your minor children should anything cause you and your spouse both to pass away at the same time.
• Putting a trust in place for each child – A trust is a great way to ensure that your child will be well taken care of, even if you die before they reach legal age. The money will be protected in the trust, and a loyal successor trustee can ensure that the funds are used to care for your child until he or she is old enough to accept the assets themselves.

Don’t Wait to Begin Estate Planning if You Have Children

Now is the time to get your estate planning squared away, and don’t forget to review your plan every time you add a new member to the family. Petrov Law Firm is here to help. Just call 619.344.0360 to ensure your family is protected.

Three Ways to Prepare Your Trust for a Beneficiary with Health Problems

When your beneficiaries have preexisting health conditions, this can have an effect on your estate planning. In what ways may the plan be affected? Here are a few tips when it comes to leaving behind assets in trust for an ill family member. Keep in mind that these suggestions apply for family members with all sorts of chronic ailments, including mental illnesses.

• Your successor trustee will play a crucial role – Choose someone who you trust to be able to handle the delicate situations that may arise when carrying out your instructions regarding the dispensation of the trust.
• Your instructions need to be crystal clear – If your instructions are clear, this empowers your successor trustee to handle matters with the proper compassion, while also protecting the estate for your loved one. When it comes to financial matters, sentimentality can often be a detriment, whereas logical thinking can result in the best fiduciary decisions.
• Include disbursements for medical care – Make sure your loved one can get the medical care that he or she needs by allowing early disbursement of funds. This is especially vital if your beneficiary is a minor who may not otherwise have access to the money.

Compassionate Estate Planning in Southern California

For all of your estate planning needs, especially if your family faces a delicate situation, contact Petrov Law Firm. Call 619.344.0360 today to learn how our estate planning attorneys can help you to craft a plan that meets the unique needs of your family.

Estate Plan Considerations if You Are at High-Risk for COVID-19

While California is taking rapid action to combat the spread of COVID-19, it is still vital for each of us to do what we can to protect our own family. One thing to consider is your estate plan, either developing one or reviewing your existing plan. Here are a few things to think about for those who are at high-risk.

• Is your advance medical directive in order? – If you end up on a ventilator, you want your medical wishes down in writing in advance, and you need to select an agent to help ensure those decisions are enforced.
• Do you have a will, trusts, or joint accounts set up for a clear transition of assets? – If something should happen to you suddenly, you won’t have time to scramble and get documents together. These decisions need to be made in advance.
• Do you have a contingency if you and your primary beneficiary both die? – Sadly, this disease has, at times, simultaneously claimed the lives of multiple members of a family. You need to be sure that there are secondary beneficiaries in place.
• Is your existing plan up to date? – If you already have an estate plan, it wouldn’t hurt to go over it, Make sure that your current beneficiaries are the ones that you want in place and make any changes that you need to right away.

Estate Planning Professionals in San Diego

If you live in the San Diego area, contact Petrov Law Firm for all of your estate planning needs. Just call 619.344.0360 to schedule a consultation with an experienced estate planning lawyer.

Dog Attack Prevention Tips for Families

Millions of dog attacks occur each year across the US, resulting in hundreds of thousands of dollars in compensation. However, you would obviously prefer to avoid an attack on a member of your family then have to seek a settlement, so here are a few tips to help prevent dog bites, particularly when it comes to children.

• Don’t approach chained dogs – Teach your kids to avoid dogs that are chained up. Clearly, the owner knows the dog is high-risk for an attack, so getting close to the dog is asking for trouble. It is unlikely that an insurance company will cover an attack by a dog that has been provoked.
• Be careful about certain breeds – Pitbulls and any sort of pitbull mix are known to be an issue when it comes to dog attacks. However, you also need to be careful with several other breeds. One that may surprise you is the German shepherd. They are very protective of their own family, so their kids will be safe, but you may not be.
• Have your family dog neutered or spayed – Statistics show that this will decrease the risk of your household pet attacking a member of the family.

San Diego Personal Injury Attorneys for Dog Attacks

The lawyers at Petrov Law Firm can handle any personal injury claim. However, one of our specialties is dog bites. So if you or a loved one has experienced an attack in southern California, we’re here to help. Call 619.344.0360 to get your case started today.

Don’t Take Chances With Who Gets Your Estate

Many people put off estate planning because no one likes to consider their own mortality. It can also be a little confusing if you try to do your own planning without the help of a professional. However, if you want to be sure that your assets go to your loved ones, then you need to be prepared. Here are two of the most important things to do regarding estate planning.

• Don’t wait any longer – If you haven’t done any estate planning or you haven’t received help from an attorney, now is the time to get your affairs in order. While California has laws regarding succession, you don’t want to rely on the state to be certain that your beneficiaries receive what you want them to get. Good estate planning will ensure your heirs get what they deserve in an efficient way without the expense and time of the court system.
• Review your documents regularly – Even if you already have an estate plan in place, you need to go over your documents annually. Every state has its own laws regarding estates, so if you move across state lines, that means going over your plan. Also, make sure that your named beneficiaries on insurance, retirement, and bank accounts and policies are accurate and up to date.

Estate Planning Experts in Southern California

Petrov Law Firm in San Diego has the estate planning attorneys to help you set your family up for the future. Contact us today at 619.344.0360 to learn more.

Turning Your Estate Plan Into a Family Legacy

For some, the most important part of estate planning is keeping your assets out of probate court so that your beneficiaries don’t have to wait to get their inheritance (not to mention having the courts take their share). However, when you plan for the future of your estate, you may also decide that you want to create a legacy to leave behind for future generations. Here are a couple of ways to make that happen.

• Leave a donation to a favorite charity – One great way to leave a legacy for your family is to help out people in need. This shows your family what is important to you and provides an example of using wealth for philanthropy rather than solely selfish gain.
• Create new family heirlooms – Bequeath some of your most prized possessions to specific family members and provide a written or recorded video reason that you feel the item should become a family heirloom. Generations from now, your family may still be passing on those items along with your story to their children.

San Diego’s Estate Planning Experts

When you want more than a run of the mill estate plan in southern California, you want the help of our expert attorneys. Call Petrov Law Firm today at 619.344.0360 to get in touch with a professional lawyer who can help you create a lasting legacy for your family. We have convenient locations in San Diego, North County, and Chula Vista, so call today to get your estate plan started!

Three Important Things to Remember About Estate Planning in California

Estate planning is an important part of thinking ahead for the future of your family. What are some things that you need to remember when preparing your estate? Here are three important tips.

• Estate planning laws vary from state to state – That means you have to update your plan any time you move between states. It also means that you need to work with an estate planning attorney from the state you are a resident of when setting up your plan.
• Review your estate plan regularly – You should look over your estate plan each year. However, if you have a major lifechanging event occur, this calls for reviewing the plan immediately. Such events can include adding a family member (marriage, birth, adoption, etc.) or losing a family member (divorce, death, disowning, etc.).
• Don’t forget planning for your health needs – Preparing your medical wishes in advance is a crucial part of estate planning. You also have the opportunity to appoint a healthcare agent who can speak for you and advocate for your wishes should you become incapacitated for a time. Therefore, you don’t want to forget your advance medical directive when preparing your estate.

Estate Planning Attorneys in San Diego

Petrov Law Firm has southern California’s premier estate planning attorneys. Give us a call at 619.344.0360 to discuss your options. We’re here to help you prepare for the future so that your family and your own needs will be well cared for.