Don't believe all the good reviews. I did nothing wrong, and they were distrusting, rude, and non-responsive, making me have to follow up repeatedly. It's definitely my presumed ethnicity as well, though I'm American. I've noticed other people get treated way better all over the world, even if they're acting much worse. Staff there on salary don't care. They have 5 stars, so they have lots of business, and aren't eager to take cases with people they're discriminating against. Other BIPOC staff can be some of the worst. The rude office manager purposely gave me "referrals" to large firms in a completely different region. They caused me a lot of stress in my short interactions with them, and failed to make me feel comfortable. It was clear they didn't want to work with me. Avoid! read more

My family got a consultant from this firm and they were very thoughtful and gave her many resources Wendy was very informative and helped my mom out a lot. Trust this firm read more

Liza Hanks helped us renew our trust years ago. We were to update our trust because we adopted our paraplegic granddaughter. Liza suggested Cookman Law, because Lisa's firm did not prepare Special Needs Trusts (SNT). Perhaps it was assumed we needed a SNT because our daughter was a paraplegic. My daughter had friends in the same condition as herself, and kept telling me she didn't need the SNT. After a few months my daughter had a phone meeting with Ellen and indeed we did not need a SNT. I suggest becoming familiar as to the specific details of SNT before meeting with a Lawyer. I didn't do the homework I needed and a Special Needs Trust was drawn up for my 27 yr old disabled daughter. It would have saved me the cost of changing the documents if I would have educated myself as to the ends and outs of these types of issues. It's all so overwhelming, otherwise everything else was fine. read more

What a relief to have everything done and done correctly! We are so happy with the services we received from Cookman Law. They created a personalized estate planning guide with a flow chart, our personalized wills and trust. Everything was clearly explained along the way, changes were easily accepted and meetings were made to fit my schedule. They even put a rush on everything when we were leaving the country soon for an extended trip. Great personalized and professional services. read more

Ellen Cookman law has been such an asset to our family with years ago a child who is now in adulthood! As we get older and the future of our son was still questionable and scary!!! We are the youngest of our families and didn't have someone who we felt could handle the ever changing laws of his benefits. IT KEPT Me UP AT NIGHT! Then we met Ellen who assisted our journey to make sure our son would be safe not only as a child but into his adult life. I didn't realize until we met Ellen Cookman how afraid I WAS of his future. Their really is no price we can put on this feeling of security she has given us. Now with her weekly videos on you tube I feel even more updated on changes that occur. I don't regret for a second making a special needs trust for our family. It's the best decision we've made for our future and sense of well being for everyone involved. Do it today, you can have that feeling too! read more

My wife and I had our first child not long ago, and we both felt prompted to start our estate plan. We looked around and were so glad to find Ellen. Her background and experience put us as ease. After our first in-person consultation, we knew we had made the right choice. She was a wonderful adviser throughout the process, answering all of our questions (including quick replies to some long emails from us). Ellen was also a good sounding board for us. She help us think through how changes to our family and financial situation over time would impact our estate plan, identifying contingencies along the way. We especially valued the time and attention Ellen put into making sure both of us understood our plan and our choices. I'd never formed a trust or a will before, and Ellen made sure we were well educated in the process. I feel a lot more on top of my family's long-term plan as a result. read more

So many positives to speak of but first off, urge you to view and subscribe to Ellen's YouTube Channel! After watching her videos and getting educated, we were convinced that Ellen is a subject matter expert on Special Needs Trusts and Estate Planning. We have also seen Ellen as a key speaker in CalAble webinars as she is a big promoter of using CalAble in conjunction with these Trusts. Although we live in Southern California, we chose to work with Ellen's firm to create our Estate Plan as this process can just as easily be facilitated via Zoom. We met with Ellen and worked closely with her attorney Hannah who is also a SME on the topic. Hannah answered all of our questions throughout the process and we have peace of mind that our recently completed Estate Plan will meet the needs of our loved ones. Finally, and just as important, Ellen's staff who you don't see, were very helpful and responsive in supporting this entire project right up to receiving the nice closing package! We highly recommend Cookman Law! read more

Ellen is a superb lawyer, especially for the special need community. She was our lawyer who represented us in getting our son conserved. She also helped us to create the special need trust for my son. Everything went very smoothly. read more

We had the best experience working with Cookman law. Ellen and everyone on the team was warm, friendly, knowledgable, and prompt in their communications. They took the time to explain everything in detail and ensured we were comfortable and informed every step of the way. We feel a sense of relief in knowing that our end-of-life plans are in such good hands! read more

Ellen and team have been outstanding with their follow through and explaining details of the services I required. I was a major challenge getting on the phone but Ellen and team always accommodated my schedule. I highly recommend Cookman Law because of their professionalism, flexibility and helping conversations. read more

Ellen was great at walking us through the estate process smoothly and efficiently, helping us decided on some of the more complex decsions that are involved. We would highly recommend her. read more

Ellen was fantastic in helping us set up our family trust, which included a special needs trust. She was so approachable, down-to-earth, professional, knowledgeable, and patient. She listened with interest and advised us with care and answered all our (many, many) questions thoroughly. I would recommend her to anyone I care about who is looking to set up an estate plan. read more

My wife and I worked with Ellen Cookman and her team at Cookman Law to create our Estate Plan. Our situation is complicated by two special needs cases. Ellen was very attentive, thoughtful, and thorough in handling our requests. We are very happy with the service we received at Cookman Law. We highly recommend Ellen and her team. read more

Professional and Compassionate Ellen is the adroit professional esquire. She help my mom, most literally up until days before her transition. She not only safeguarded my mom's assets while going through a divorce but she also protected my mom's future wishes which made thing easier for my family in the end. Lawyers sometime get a bad reputation, however in my experience Ellen keeps thing above board, she is transparent and clearly articulates what needs to happen. She is quite compassionate and has an empathetic heart. I am glad we found her and would recommend her wholeheartedly. read more

Ellen provided superb support to me when I was trustee of a trust. For the many (new to me) activities that I conducted, she guided me through the process every step of the way in a very thorough, confident, and patient manner. Right away I felt a trust with her. She is extremely knowledgeable, understanding, and responsive. read more

Ellen is thorough, patient, and a pleasure to work with. My mother was having a hard time putting her affairs in order after my father passed. Ellen took time to research and explain everything! That put my mother and I at ease. I would suggest Cookman Law for all of your estate planning needs. read more

Ellen was excellent in explaining every detail of our plan for all of our six children and five children. She has revised it as our family grows. Great advice giver. read more

I interviewed at least 6 different highly recommended estate planning attorneys and Ellen was the clear winner. She has the broadest knowledge of California estate law and related family law issues which can be complicated. She's smart, patient, flexible, and able to work with a range of different people. You feel like you're working with someone who knows what they're doing, and helps evaluate options but doesn't push in a particular direction if it's inappropriate. Most importantly, she's focused on her clients and I really felt I could trust her. I have recommended her to friends already. read more

Ellen answered all my questions about estate planning and asked a lot of her own to ensure I got what I needed. She sent the draft versions via her easy to use secure server and I requested a few minor changes, which she incorporated before I came in to sign the final versions. She charges a flat rate for estate planning. She's friendly and personable but very professional. Wear a sweater to the office - they like the AC up! :) read more

Ellen Cookman is responsive, thoughtful, easy to talk to and extremely knowledgable. I highly recommend her.

I put a lot of thought into selecting Cookman Law. Foremost, with so much at stake, I wanted a Certified Specialist, Estate Planning, Trust and Probate Law from the California State Bar Board of Legal Specialization. I wanted someone intuitively drawn to detail, a lawyer who listens, explains the pros and cons of our options, offers suggestions, is responsive. A lawyer confident in their skills. In creating our Family Trust Ellen Cookman proved to have all these qualities---with a bonus. She is one of the nicest people I have ever met. read more

I was thrilled to have found Ellen. She was easy to talk to and very professional at the same time. We were able to complete all my estate planning needs within a few visits and a couple short calls for which she was always very available. I highly recommend Ellen if you've been putting off your estate planning needs- she's A+ read more

Ellen was great to work with and did a great job writing my estate plan and walking me through the process. She is approachable, knowledgeable, and detailed oriented. She was easy to talk to, asked the right questions, and explained things well. I would definitely recommend her to friends needing similar help, she is a true professional. read more

Ellen did the Estate Planning for our family with a special needs son. She was so great to work with along the way. She answered all our questions and came up with some great solutions. She listened to our needs and was able to deliver on a tight deadline. Our Estate Planning was a multi-step process due to our situation and she was able to remain flexible. She is patient, detail oriented and an expert in her field. I would highly recommend Cookman Law. read more

My husband & I had put off our Estate Planning because it felt too 'big' and we weren't sure how to get started. Ellen was WONDERFUL. She is extremely professional and it was obvious that Estate Planning is her specialty. She is patient, very knowledgeable, timely, clear-cut and easy to work with. She was able to answer all of our questions and we now have a trust and will that we feel confident in. We would absolutely recommend Ellen to any of our friends and colleagues. read more

Ellen is very knowledgeable in the area of Estate Planning and particularly Special Needs Trusts. She is easy to work with, flexible and thorough. I have recommended her to several others. read more

Ellen did an excellent job of preparing a will for our family. She was knowledgeable, professional and had a very good understanding of our concerns and issues. The will that she drafted matched our plans and instructions well and her rates were reasonable. We highly recommend her estate planning services to others. read more

I give attorney Ellen Cookman my strongest recommendation as a trusts and estates attorney. Without her I would not have been able to administer my father's estate. She filed and received instant approval of a "Heggstad Petition," which basically cured a defect in my father's estate documents while avoiding the more expensive and protracted full probate process. She is intelligent, compassionate and understanding. Her rates are reasonable and fair. She stayed within the budget that she estimated for me at the beginning of the matter. She is an extremely capable attorney and an even better person. read more