Contact — California

Michael Holmes is licensed to practice law in California. Call the California line below, or send a message and the office will get back to you. Most matters are handled remotely by phone, video and secure document exchange, which means clients across California are served without anyone driving across the state for a signature.

California Phone and Email

What Is Different About California

California is a community property state, and it is also the state where probate is most worth avoiding. California probate is court supervised, and attorney and representative compensation is set by statute as a percentage of the gross value of the estate — the gross value, not the equity. A single home carrying a large mortgage can therefore generate statutory fees out of all proportion to what the family actually receives, which is why revocable living trusts are close to standard here rather than optional.

California imposes no state estate tax, but property tax is its own planning problem. Since Proposition 19 took effect in 2021 the exclusions that once let a parent pass a home to a child at the parent’s assessed value are far narrower, and families who assumed a house would reach the next generation at the old tax basis frequently find that it will not. Holmes Law serves both ends of the state; the Southern and Northern California lines are listed above.

What to Have Ready

None of this is required before you call — if you have only half of it, call anyway. It simply makes the first conversation more useful.

  • A sentence or two on what has happened, or what you are trying to arrange.
  • Where any real property sits — county and state for each parcel, because the state the land is in controls how it transfers.
  • Roughly what is involved: a home, retirement accounts, a business interest, life insurance, firearms, property in more than one state.
  • Any documents that already exist — a will, a trust, a deed, an operating agreement, a prior marital agreement — even if they are years out of date.
  • Who else is in the picture: a spouse, children from an earlier marriage, business partners, or the parent whose care is the reason for the call.
  • Whether anything is on a clock: a closing date, a court date, a probate deadline, a tax filing.

What We Handle in California

Family law work outside Idaho is limited to prenuptial and postnuptial agreements.

How the First Conversation Works

The first call is a conversation, not an intake form. You describe the situation; I tell you whether it is something Holmes Law handles in California, what the work would involve and roughly what it would cost. If what you actually need is a California litigator, an accountant or a title company rather than an estate planning attorney, I will say so on that call rather than after you have paid a retainer. Engagement terms are put in writing before any work begins.

Schedule a Consultation

Tell us briefly what you are dealing with and the best way to reach you. There is no charge for the initial conversation.

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