Premier Legal Services in California

Estate Planning, Wills & Trusts

Effective estate planning does not have to be time-consuming or complicated with the right guidance. If you want to protect your loved ones, you must do some planning… or the courts could do it for you! Count on our experience and expertise to make planning easy for you.    

TRUST AND WILLS MADE EASY!  Our experienced lawyers take the hard work out of preparing an estate plan. You’ll be surprised at how easy it will be.
  • Trusts
  • Wills
  • Powers of Attorney
  • Advance Healthcare Directives
  • HIPAA Releases 
  • Asset Protection
  • Special Needs Trusts
  • Business Succession Planning
  • Entity Formation
  • Pet Trusts
  • Heggstad Petitions
  • Charitable Gift Planning
  • Life Insurance Trusts
  • Irrevocable Trusts
  • Spousal Property Petitions
  • Small Estate Administration
  • Advising Trustees and Executors
  • Representation of Beneficiaries
  • Probate
  • Trust Administration

Trust Administration

Trust administration is the process of settling the affairs of a person with a trust who has passed away. The person legally responsible (the “Trustee”) has important legal and ethical obligations. Pierce King Law can assist and guide you through this process to make it as easy as possible.

There are many legal, tax, accounting, and investment obligations of a Trustee, some of which impose personal liability.  PIERCE KING LAW is experienced and committed to assist Trustees every step of the way.  We guide Trustees through the maze of legal, accounting, tax and ethical issues required to administer and distribute a trust estate. Among other things, Pierce King Law can provide assistance with: 
  • Interpreting of Trusts
  • Preparing Legally-Required Notices
  • Filing Documents with the Government and Court
  • Administering Pourover Wills
  • Transferring Real Estate
  • Obtaining a Trust Tax ID Number
  • Assisting with the Inventory of Assets and Debts 
  • Assisting with Trust Accounting
  • Arranging for a Bond, if required
  • Assisting with the Transfer of Assets 
  • Advising Trustees or Beneficiaries *
* Lawyers are prohibited from representing both trustees and beneficiaries in the same matter.

Probate

Probate is a court-supervised process of gathering and distributing the assets of someone who has passed away. Probate can take from one to four years, and is required by law in some situations. Unfortunately, heirs must wait until the entire court process is done before they can receive their inheritance.

Pierce King Law offers compassionate assistance through the complex probate process of preparing legally-required documents, submitting spreadsheets to the court, having assets valued by a court representative and more.  We guide people through the entire court process and ultimate distribution of their loved one’s assets.  Among other things, our firm can assist you with:
  • Selecting the proper Probate Court in which to file the paperwork 
  • Advising on which assets must go through the probate process
  • Drafting the Petition for Probate
  • Providing legally-required notices
  • Arranging for the publication of the Petition as required by law
  • Authenticating a Will, if one exists
  • Obtaining “Letters” from the court to authorize the executor to act
  • Filing of a Spousal Property Petition, if required
  • Advising the Executor when to pay final bills 
  • Coordinating with accountants to prepare final tax returns
  • Preparing and filing the Final Petition to obtain the Court’s permission to distribute assets to beneficiaries 
  • Concluding the Probate process
As lawyers say, where there’s a Will, there’s a… Probate

Corporation, LLC & Partnership Formation

Start Your Business On A Solid Foundation.  Decisions made at the business formation stage have financial and legal consequences for many years to come. So, it is essential to start your business on solid footing.  Take advantage of the experience and practical guidance Pierce King offers. 

Our firm’s founder spent 20 years as an in-house counsel working side-by-side with business people like you. We understand businesses in a way that most lawyers have never personally experienced. Pierce King Law has helped form businesses since its inception. We celebrate our client’s victories and successes. One of our local small business clients was even invited to the White House!  Let us help you reach your business’s full potential by having us help you with:  
  • C Corporations
  • S Corporations
  • Limited Liability Companies
  • Partnerships
  • Business Succession Planning
  • Annual Meeting Minutes
  • Buy-Sell Agreements
  • Operating Agreements
  • General Business Consulting 
  • Stock and Membership Interest Certificates
  • Employee Training
  • and more!
 

Business Transactions

Drawing on her 30+ years of experience both as in-house counsel with major international corporations and in private practice, Julie King provides her clients with practical solutions that meet businesses’ needs. Her extensive experience on both sides of the table makes her uniquely qualified to assist business owners and managers with a comprehensive array of services all under one roof.  

Our law firm’s founder, Julie King, has over 30 years of experience handling a wide variety of issues that business owners and managers face on a day-to-day basis. Pierce King Law has advised small and medium-sized businesses since its inception and always takes into account each business’ objectives when formulating legal strategies to address financial, operational and other key business issues. The breadth of our firm’s experience makes Pierce King Law the ideal choice to handle your business matters. The following is a partial list of the services we provide.
  • Contract Drafting and Negotiation
  • General Business Consulting
  • Promissory Notes and Guarantees
  • Non-Disclosure Agreements
  • Annual Meeting Minutes
  • Board Resolutions
  • Corporate Records Book Updates
  • Strategic Planning
  • Trade Secret Protection
  • Business Succession Planning
  • Buy-Sell, Operating and Partnership Agreements
  • Mechanic’s Liens
  • Corporate Governance
  • Business Dissolutions

General Counsel Services & Employee Training

The right law firm will not only help guide your business through legal issues, but will also play a key role in helping your business reach its strategic objectives. If your business is without a General Counsel or sufficient legal staff, we offer virtual General Counsel services and employee training on a project or as-needed basis, or as an extension of your legal team.

When you turn to Pierce King Law, you will receive the experience and wisdom gained from twenty years working in-house at major international corporations. Our first priority is always to learn your business’ goals and needs.  Your business objectives are key to the advice we give. Our services include, among other things:     
  • Negotiating and Managing Business Contracts
  • Drafting Policies and Procedures
  • Governing Business Entities
  • Sourcing and Managing Outside Counsel in Other States and Countries
  • Advising on and Implementing Strategic Decisions
  • Conducting Employee Training through our firm or in conjunction with Alliance Career Training Solutions