John Martin

I help California families, fiduciaries, beneficiaries, business owners, real property owners, executives, founders, venture capitalists, and professional advisors plan, administer, and resolve complex estate and trust matters.I am the founder and principal of Law Offices of John C. Martin, P.C. in Palo Alto and am certified as a Specialist in Estate Planning, Trust, and Probate Law by the California State Bar Board of Legal Specialization. Over nearly two decades in practice, I have prepared more than 2,000 estate plans and administered hundreds of trusts, including matters involving taxable and non-taxable estates, estate and gift tax returns, trust funding, fiduciary accountings, subtrust allocation, commercial real estate, closely held businesses, and beneficiary issues.My work sits at the intersection of planning, administration, tax, real property, fiduciary duties, family dynamics, and dispute resolution.Plan: revocable trusts, wills, powers of attorney, health care directives, advanced estate and gift tax planning, business succession, charitable planning, California property tax planning, incapacity planning, retirement asset planning, and international estate planning.Administer: trustee and executor counseling, trust administration, probate, notices, asset inventories, appraisals, estate and gift tax returns, CPA coordination, accountings, beneficiary communication, subtrust funding, reserves, distributions, and closeout.Resolve: trust and estate litigation, breach of trust, breach of fiduciary duty, trustee removal or suspension, surcharge, contested accountings, trust contests, will contests, elder abuse claims, contested conservatorships, petitions for instructions, trust modification, and trust-property disputes.Clients and referral sources often contact the firm when a matter involves substantial assets, California real property, business interests, tax-sensitive planning, contested administration, or a dispute that requires both Probate Code judgment and practical negotiation strategy.I earned my B.A. from UCLA, magna cum laude; my J.D. from Boston College Law School; and a French diploma from Sciences Po in Paris. I speak French fluently and have experience coordinating cross-border probate and administration matters involving Canada, Mexico, Asia, Europe, and French-language attorneys and notaries.Attorney Advertising. LinkedIn content is general information only and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Please do not send confidential information through LinkedIn.