By JUDD MATSUNAGA, ESQ.
For close to seven decades, I remember celebrating Nisei Week every August.
For my family, the most memorable years were 1971, when my grandpa Jiro Morita was honored as grand marshal for serving as president of the Pasadena-Mishima Sister Committee. And in 1972, when my cousin Carol was crowned Nisei Week Queen. But today, now that the youngest of the Nisei (those that are still around) are approaching 100 years of age, have you ever wondered when they are going to change the festivities to “Sansei Week?” I have.
For the most part, the Sansei are part of the Baby Boomer generation, born between 1946 and 1964, a product of 19 years of prosperity following World War II. Did you know that as of Jan. 1, 2026, the nation’s first Baby Boomers have started to turn 80 years old? As more Baby Boomers pass this milestone, the nation’s age 80-plus population group is projected to double, from 14.7 million in 2025 to 29.4 million in 2045.
Baby boomer seniors are more educated than their predecessors (Source: https://www.ml.com/articles/great-wealth-transfer-impact.html). During their younger years, Baby Boomers advanced the causes of civil rights and women’s equality, setting the stage for broader shifts among later generations. They have affected the business world and popular culture in ways that still endure, and represented four U.S. presidents, each serving two terms.
As they begin to turn 80, the Baby Boomer generation is now entering into the “oldest old” age category. Baby Boomers will inflate the size of the nation’s oldest population group.
But Baby Boomers aren’t going away quietly. Baby Boomers will pass on $53 trillion to their heirs in the next few decades.
If you are a Boomer, are you ready? You have probably already come to terms with the fact that you’re not indestructible. Have you set up your estate plan? If not, all kinds of stuff can go wrong. “Like what?” you might ask. Like probate. If you die without an estate plan, you are sending your heirs to a court process called “probate.” Probate is a legal nightmare. But probate can be avoided with an estate plan.
But things far worse can also happen. The following story is true, only the names have been changed to protect the innocent:
Bart, a Boomer, came into my office a while back to talk about his family situations. His parents, Homer and Marge, were getting up in years approaching 100 years of age. “Do I need a will?” Bart asked. I responded, “Do you own your own home?” “Yes,” Bart replied. I said, “You need a trust. Here’s why…”
If you die unexpectedly without an estate plan, e.g., will or trust, not only would your heirs have to go to probate court, but all kinds of terrible stuff could happen. “Like what?” Bart asked. If you die intestate, i.e., without a will or trust, your estate would have to be probated. Since there is no writing (will or trust), the probate court would give your estate to your heirs “at law.” Since you have no children and no spouse, that means everything would go to your parents.
“That’s not good,” Bart said. “My parents are 99 and 98 years old. Dad has moderate Alzheimer’s and Mom still has capacity, but is definitely highly influenced by my younger sister Lisa, i.e., the ‘dutiful daughter.’ The problem is that Lisa, the youngest of the three children, seems to think she knows everything. Although I have told her that the experts say there’s no such thing as ‘role reversal,’ she insists on parenting our parents.
“I’ve told her that you’re supposed to honor your parents,” Bart continues. “But I’ve actually seen my father, whom I have respected my whole life, be brought to tears because my sister wouldn’t let him have a piece of cake because he might choke on it. It breaks my heart,” Bart said. “Needless to say, unfortunately, we don’t get along.”
Is sibling conflict common in the Japanese American community? I don’t actually know since I’ve never read about any studies; I can only go by my own personal experience. On my father’s side, no problems. But on my mother’s side — definitely. My uncle’s family had a son that was pretty much estranged. My aunt’s family had two daughters that wouldn’t talk to each other and didn’t get along. When the older sister died, the younger sister wasn’t invited to her funeral. So yes, sibling rivalry leading to sibling conflict is quite common, but I digress.
Getting back to Bart dying intestate — since Homer has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, your mom would likely be appointed administrator of your estate. That means, unofficially, that your sister Lisa would probably call the shots because she more or less controls what your mom says. Here’s the scary part — although you have two nice, expensive plots at Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills, Lisa could have Mom sell them, have you cremated, and have your ashes put in a cardboard box.
“But I don’t want my remains to be put in a cardboard box,” Bart exclaimed. “I understand,” I replied. That’s why you need to set up an estate plan. Lisa will have absolutely no control over your estate, or your funeral or burial because you have made legal documents that won’t allow that.”
Have you? I’ve spoken to many Sansei with aging Nisei parents who don’t get along with their siblings. If you have a sibling that you don’t see eye to eye with, you need an estate plan too!!!
“But Judd, what do you mean by an estate plan?” I mean a revocable living trust and related estate planning documents. Most estate planning attorneys today will give you a three-ring estate planning binder with tabs. If your attorney gave you a large envelope with several documents stapled together with blue backs, you need to have your estate plan updated. Chances are, as family and friends have passed away over the years, you’ve crossed out and hand-written new instructions — not legal.
Let’s start with the basics — what is a revocable living trust? A revocable living trust is similar to a will, i.e., you give instructions for who inherits your estate upon your death. The big difference is that a will has to be probated, i.e., you probate a will. A living trust, however, avoids probate, saving your heirs tens of thousands of dollars in probate fees and one to two years in probate court.
As an example, even if all you own is your home worth $800,000 and you have taken out $300,000 in loans to pay for the cost of living, probate fees will still be in excess of $50,000.
The “revocable” means that you can update it, amend it, or revoke it at any time (provided you still have capacity). The “living” means that you are still alive. As the “settlor” of your own estate, you name yourself the “trustee” of your trust. That means that there is absolutely no disadvantage to you in setting up your revocable living trust. You stay in full control of your money and your property. If you want to sell your home and move to Las Vegas or to a retirement home, you can.
“But Judd, my friend told me that I can avoid probate by putting my child’s name on title while I’m alive. Then when I die, the surviving joint tenant owns the home, no probate.” Don’t put your kid’s name on title to your home. Huge tax problems. The only time the IRS forgives gain is a transfer on death. If you put your kid’s name on your house, you lose the “step-up” in basis that only happens upon death. If your child decides to sell your home after your death, they might have to pay capital gain taxes on a million-dollar gain (e.g., close to $200,000).
Another problem with putting your kid’s name on your home is that you lose control. What if you want to sell your home and move into a retirement home but your kid won’t sign? Or, what if your kid gets sued? Or what if you want to refinance your home to put on a new roof or get a reverse mortgage to help make ends meet, but your kid won’t sign? What if your kid dies before you? Now you might be sharing ownership of your home with your daughter-in-law. Ever hear the expression “Penny wise, pound foolish”?
For those of you who set up your living trust many years ago, you might have named a brother or sister to be your successor trustee, i.e., your kids were too young at the time. But now that your kids are adults (i.e., over 18), you’ve crossed out your sibling’s name and handwritten in your child’s name. “Surely the bank will honor the change,” you might think. Think again. Banks won’t do anything that might be subject to a challenge. You need a trust amendment.
On a regular basis, an adult child of a trust client will call me and say, “The bank won’t talk to me because they say that I’m only a successor trustee. They said I have to be a “primary trustee.” Simple solution — we make a simple amendment to the trust making the adult child a co-primary trustee with the parent. Now the bank or financial institution will talk with the adult child. However, you might have to provide the bank with a new trust certificate.
Anyone who owns their own home definitely needs a revocable living trust, no “ifs, ands, or buts.” Even if you don’t own your own home, you still need to set up an estate plan. If all you own is a bank account that your child is on as a joint account holder, and don’t need a living trust, you should still execute power of attorney. There are actually two: a durable power of attorney for assets, and a health care power of attorney.
If you become incapacitated and have not appointed a trusted family member or friend to be your power of attorney, the court could appoint a stranger to be your legal conservator (guardian in non-California states). “Can I appoint all my children to be co-power of attorneys?” You may appoint more than one power of attorney, but I don’t recommend it. What if they don’t agree? They’d end up in court letting a judge decide. My legal advice is to pick one primary agent, and then the other(s) as alternate agents in case the first is not able to act.
According to the Alzheimer’s Association, one in three seniors 85+ develop Alzheimer’s disease. According to AARP, two of five seniors will eventually need long-term care. Since your goal is to pass down as much as possible of an estate to your children, make sure your POA has Medi-Cal planning provisions. Your living trust should also contain Medi-Cal planning powers allowing the successor trustee to “self-gift.”
Finally, you should execute a health care power of attorney. If you end up in the hospital, and the doctor wants to perform an operation or surgery, they need consent. If you’re awake, they would ask you. You would give consent, or refuse to consent to any kind of treatment or procedure. But consent must be “informed.” That means you need to understand what’s going on.
If, however, you’re in a coma or other state where you can’t give informed consent, the health care power of attorney appoints an agent to make health care decisions for you.
In conclusion, if you haven’t set up your estate plan, what are you waiting for? If your estate plan is old, have it updated. If you know you still need to set one up, but are waiting for the right time, keep an eye out for our “Sansei Week Special” coming soon!!!
Judd Matsunaga, Esq., is the founding partner of the Elder Law Services of California, specializing in estate/Medi-Cal planning, probate, personal injury and real estate law. With offices in Torrance, Encino, Pasadena and Fountain Valley, he can be reached at (310) 318-2995. Opinions expressed in this column are not necessarily those of The Rafu Shimpo.