Best Estate Planning Attorney Santa Rosa Near Me

4worldlovers: Most Americans do not. Recent studies show that only 17% of people over the age of 50 have a will.

What does that mean for the 83% that do not have a plan?

It means that the State of California or the Federal Government will decide

What happens to your Home, Cash, Bank Accounts and Retirement Funds.

Do you really want a State Agency to decide how your spouse, partner and children

Will be taken care of if you become disabled or die?

To obtain access to funds your spouse will have to jump through numerous hurdles and possibly file a probate that could take up to 2 years to finalize.

If you become incapacitated or disabled the State of California has the right to step in and take control of your property and decide how you will be cared for.

A poorly written plan can have severe tax implications that would take thousands of dollars away from your spouse, partner and children.

A poor strategy could leave all your property to a child’s creditor or spouse.

Please take the time to use this website to research your particular situation. If you don’t have the time call our office for a free consultation at 707-595-1148. A well crafted Estate Plan should include:

From Planning Your Estate to Passing it on, We Are by Your Side

No matter what event brings people to our door, they all have one thing in common: they want to be sure that their rights and wishes are respected. For over a decade, the Law Office of James A. Zakasky has been helping people protect and distribute their assets, access long-term health care benefits, and plan for a secure financial future.

We offer comprehensive resources that protect clients both before and after death, providing for you and your family in the following ways:

Many people think that a will is the only document they need for their end-of-life plans. While a will can be useful in telling your family what your wishes are, it does not guarantee that those wishes will be followed. There are many legal tools at your disposal, but all involve complex laws and careful administration—and a single misstep while making your arrangements can turn a simple procedure into an exhausting legal battle.

While it may not be pleasant to think about what will happen after you are gone, planning for the passage of your estate and property during your lifetime allows you to control when and where your assets will go. At the Law Offices of James A. Zakasky, we can…

Examine or create your will and testament to guard against contention.

Set up revocable and irrevocable trusts to protect your wealth and maintain Medicaid eligibility.

Advise you on minimizing your tax liability (such as federal estate tax) on your assets.

Reduce the value of assets creditors may collect as debt payment.

Designate trusted loved ones to hold healthcare proxies and powers of attorney.

Assign a competent and responsible trustee for your estate and holdings.

Minimize the length of time your assets are held in probate

Before your property is passed on to your beneficiaries, it enters a legal process called probate. Simply put, your assets and belongings are held by a local court which determines if you owe any outstanding debts and taxes after your death. If so, the amount of that debt is taken from the value of your estate before the rest is passed on to your heirs, potentially reducing the value by hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Attorney James A. Zakasky provides counseling for families going through the probate process. From finding equitable solutions to providing dedicated representation in court, our firm offers sound legal advice to protect your rights following the death of a loved one.

We help clients resolve all kinds of issues that arise during probate, including:

4worldlovers: I enjoy helping people plan for the future. Practicing throughout the San Francisco Bay Area for over 20 years, I have helped clients from all walks of life and extremely varied net worth. I continually – more…

We provide comprehensive estate planning services and products to a diverse clientele throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Before starting work, we want to make sure that – more…

4worldlovers: The entire staff at Johnston & Associates is dedicated to serve its clients with quality, caring, and compassionate representation. We draft our clients’ trusts and related documents in detail to ensure that they meet the unique needs of the family. Although we try to avoid conflict and work hard to settle disputes amicably, when litigation is the only option, we vigorously represent our client’s interests in court.


Planning of estates including wills, gifts, wealth preservation, and generation transfers


General conservatorships are often used for aging adults who have lost the ability to make decisions

Determining the most appropriate entity type that is best suited for your business

Planning for the succession of the ownership and leadership of your business

4worldlovers:
Paul Miller, Esq. is gracious, organized/efficient, knowledgeable, and cost effective. We have a complex financial structure and Paul was able to work through it with dispatch and make some very sound recommendations for our current situation and for the future which is of course the reason for developing an estate plan in the first place. This was very reassuring to my wife and I.


Yelp reviews led me to Paul Miller, Esq. and I concur with all the good things said! Paul Miller is gracious, patient, informative, easy to talk with, responsive, and prompt in his replies! He is welcoming and very sympathetic; organized and knowledgeable.


Paul Miller Esq. is a down to earth professional and was informative, personable and respectful when helping my father with his estate planning. I would definitely work with him again.


Paul was exceedingly helpful in writing trusts and wills for me and for my sister. He made himself available several times when we needed his expertise on short notice. He is skillful in his craft and a warm caring individual.

Paul is ethical, knowledgeable, compassionate, and thorough. He helped me through the will and trust process, as well as skillfully working with the co-owners of my property in changing our title to tenants-in-common. Paul's patience, communication skills, and sense of humor made this essential task bearable. I wish he could be my dentist too!