We at California Trusts Online believe that you are who you are and you love whom you love. We serve underserved communities—those who do not need complex estate planning, those who do not have the resources for a traditional attorney-client relationship, and those who may not fit the traditional ideas of gender and relationships. We welcome the LGBTQ+ communities. We strive to include all forms of relationships and concepts of family.
When drafting our Trusts, Wills, Powers of Attorney, Advance Health Care Directives and Deeds, we carefully avoid using the terms “he”, “she” and “they” unless absolutely necessary. When possible, we refer to your loved ones by their roles in your estate plan, such as “Beneficiary” and “Executor.” You will see the use of “he/she/they” in the notary acknowledgments, but that language is required by law, and when you sign your documents your notary public will cross out the choices that do not apply. When you meet with your notary public, we recommend that you ask the notary to use the pronoun that best fits your needs.
We also avoid using the terms “husband” and “wife,” preferring the terms “spouse” and “partner” instead. We refer to the members of a couple as “customer 1” and “customer 2,” which may sound cold and commercialistic but is intended to recognize you as an individual who may not fit the husband/wife terminology.
Sensitivity counts. We understand that there is no one way of being human, and we are not in the business of forcing anyone to fit a specific model of behavior.
However, we recognize that we still have much to learn. If you have suggestions for our improvement in this area, please email us at contact@californiatrustsonline.com.