Is Your California IRA Protected From Creditors? Probably Not.
The bottom line is that it is very difficult to predict what part of a debtor's IRA will ultimately determined to be exempt depending on the debtor's remaining years to retirement, needs in retirement, and other factors. What is not at all difficult to determine is that if the debtor's needs will be taken care of by an exempt plan, the IRA will not be exempt and thus not protected from creditors.