We came to Golden State Trust with an idea of what we wanted but weren't entirely sure of the…read moreprocess. They guided us every step of the way, helped us think through scenarios we hadn't considered, and made everything easy to understand. They were incredibly responsive, personable, and made the entire process feel simple and stress-free. We highly recommend them!

Smooth and easy estate planning experience, with friendly and knowledgeable attorneys. Would…read moredefinitely recommend!

Lauren was very thorough, knowledgeable, a great communicator with attention to detail. Very…read morepleased to work with her. Highly recommended.

Update: I have received a very courteous call from Lauren Rios after posting my review; she…read moreexplained their intake process and I suggested it would have been nice to hear something along the lines of "if your case can wait till the month of _________, we'd be happy to consider it at the time." Bumping my review by one star. After reading glorious reviews, Lauren Rios was my number one choice and the first attorney I contacted. The receptionist took down my personal details only to inform me right away that they are not accepting new clients at this time. I wasn't asked for any details of my situation to determine whether the firm has the expertise or the bandwidth to take on my case, now or in the future. This left me wondering whether my Jewish-sounding last name made them turn me away without any further consideration. After all, it would be enough to ask for a first name only in order to carry on a conversation.

Marisa and her team provide a great customer experience. They were very communicative,…read moreknowledgeable, prompt and we were able to complete everything in just a few weeks. Marisa really took time to listen to what was important to me, asked questions and walked through all documents to make sure I understood them. I would highly recommend Marisa and her team for anyone needing a comprehensive estate planning solution.

Marisa is an amazing estate attorney. I first used her services to review my mother's estate plan…read morethat another attorney did in 2003. She found a critical error with regards to how her property was put in Trust with the county and provided the service to correct that error. Then I hired her to do our estate plan from scratch in a rush timeline. Not only did she complete the estate plan in our timeline, we found her highly professional, very diplomatic when discussing sensitive topics, responsive, and thorough. I would highly recommend her services as she made the process easy and quick.

Matt and his staff were always very responsive, and I especially appreciate that all appointments…read moreare by conference call, which makes scheduling so convenient. Overall, they made the process of setting up my trust much easier than I expected. He has the expertise to structure everything in a way that fits my goals, and he took the time to clearly explain what he was doing and how the trust works. I created this trust with my children and future grandchildren in mind, and I feel that with Matt's help, I've already done something meaningful for them. I'm very grateful for his expertise and guidance.

Matt is simply awesome!! We researched a few firms, talked to a few lawyers, before we decided to…read morego with Matt (referred by my credit union personal banker). We did have a trust many years ago with another firm but that lawyer retired and his firm wanted to charge a lot more for lifetime trusts, had a poor response time with interaction only with front-office staff and so that law firm lost a repeat client business! Matt is very methodical, the entire process is very well organized, he goes through patiently all the nuances in the intro call and to his credit he is also very clear on what he can commit to or not (e.g. a 24 hour response time window or completely remote zoom based exchange than in person mtgs/office). This ensures client satisfaction since clients are clear on what to expect upfront. Matt also helped us navigate creating the concept of lifetime trusts and its benefit, several other lawyers just wanted to create a simple trust or charge more for lifetime trust. Matt has a very reasonable flat-fee (his fees are not the highest and not the lowest) which I really liked and its not based on whether we decided to go with lifetime trusts or any other complex factors. We got our trust done within a reasonable time and if you are well organized Matt's process is fairly efficient. I am really happy we went with Matt and I highly recommend him!

Last year, my spouse and I needed to set up our estate plan, and were encouraged by a previous…read moreclient of hers to contact Pratt Law. Word-of-mouth endorsement from a trusted friend was valuable to me, and so were the positive Yelp reviews I read when conducting my due diligence about Pratt Law. My experience was excellent, and my spouse and I came away from the process with a complete, organized estate plan, as well as a roadmap for getting all of our assets retitled into it. Analisa Pratt is an attentive, detail-oriented lawyer who treated our estate planning with the kind of granular analysis I previously thought only electron microscopes could perform. I, a person who habitually thinks and overthinks many scenarios, was awed/eclipsed by the sheer volume of life (and post-life) legal contingencies Analisa covered with us, step by step, in plain language that we could understand, offering us actionable decisions and their associated legal outcomes for probably everything two average people might experience in their lifetimes. Added bonus: I no longer have to overthink anything we covered in our estate plan, because it's all spelled out like a notarized Choose-Your-Own-Adventure book, less a few dragons. If you're considering creating an estate plan, I very highly recommend Analisa Pratt. I feel very confident in the work we did together, and very grateful for the diligence with which she conducted research, exchanged emails, filed forms, and prepared our meetings and our materials. I am thinking about the people who might read my review in the years to come, as you look for an estate planner, knowing that you are probably on some level wondering if planning your estate means you'll have to talk about *everything* that could happen in life and after, and how that might make you feel. Well, my spouse and I did have to talk about all of those things, and I feel so fortunate that we worked with Analisa, because she made it very easy and comfortable for us to do so. Her non-judgmental and warm treatment of us made me feel like helping us through this important life maintenance task was something about which she cared deeply. Estate planning is a subject about which I knew little, but felt I needed greatly. My spouse and I found Analisa to be so patient, so professional, and so committed to continuous learning about estate law, which made Pratt Law a great match for us. Thank you, Analisa!

My cousin has been trying to help my find a lawyer. She searched on Yelp and found Analisa Pratt…read more They had brief phone call on Monday, and Analisa sent us a long questionnaire which asks for all sorts of personal information that is dangerous to send via unencrypted SMTP email -- that's a common way that data breaches happen -- and says that she'll schedule a complimentary Zoom meeting. I wrote back on Monday and outlined the 3 points we need help with. No reply from Analisa. 2 days later I email Analisa to follow up. She asks for my phone number. I reply. Again nothing. 2.3 hours later I email to ask when I should expect her call so I'm ready. [I hate back & forth voicemail tag.] A few minutes later the phone rings, but when I stand up to answer it, I feel a bladder urgency and tell Analisa that I need to use the toilet and could I either put her on hold briefly, call he back, or have her call me back in 5 minutes. She sounds irritated and says she'll call me back. Then nothing. 18 minutes later I email Analisa to ask if she wanted me to call her. Who knows, perhaps I misheard her. I don't want to be waiting by the phone all day, I've got a lot on my plate currently. 8 minutes later Analisa emails me that she's not going to consider this matter, her schedule is completely booked with current clients. Gee, if that's the case and Analisa cannot take on new clients, why not say so up front? Why waste our time? I am concerned that this office does not seem to understand the security limitations of Internet based technology and does not want to use an encrypted secure document server to receive confidential information.

Our experience with Mari started out great, but then communication became more and more sparse. We…read morewere SO close to completing paperwork when she simply stopped returning our messages. The last step was for her to send in the completed papers and that was 5 months ago. Very disappointed.

Update: I received…read moreMarizen's private message and her request to edit or remove my review--this request was notably left off her public comment as noted in the screenshot attached. Since the 2 stars (which equates to the "[service] could've been better") were due to the unprofessionalism and inattentiveness shown (not due to her being an LDA), I have no reason to change my rating or delete my review. TL;DR: Marizen is NOT a lawyer. She is a Legal Document Assistant that cannot provide you with legal advice. She is a significantly affordable option for a Living Trust but she is unprofessional and has poor attention to detail-- key characteristics that are paramount to detailing an important document. Details: I left a Living Trust inquiry via her site and Marizen emailed me back within 1 day to "text" her back for a scheduled over-the-phone consult. Upon speaking with Marizen it was clear she did not take the time to review the few questions I had sent her in my initial inquiry as she was confused as to what the consult would primarily be regarding. Her rates were significantly less than what other competing services were offering which raised an orange flag for me. Upon further research, I realized Marizen was NOT a lawyer, but rather a "Legal Document Assistant (LDA)." According to the CA Attorney General, LDAs cannot give legal advice. This was my first encounter with an LDA, which allowed me the opportunity to do the necessary research to make a more educated investment. Had Marizen gotten back to me with the necessary next steps and questionnaire as she had promised (it's been over 1.5 weeks), I may have considered her as a possible option to complete my Living Trust needs. But if you are looking for a more affordable option, perhaps Marizen is a good fit for you.

we worked with Albert from summerall to setup a trust when our child was born. he (and the entire…read moreteam we worked with) made the process so easy. I really appreciated the 'how to guide' they made for us so we understand how everything works. even after we were done working with them, they were very kind in answering follow up questions we had a year later. highly recommend these folks!

We used Summerall Law for establishing our initial family trust and estate, to ensure we had the…read morebasics in place as we became parents. Everyone at Summerall Law was great to work with, and walked us patiently though all the areas that normally trip people up, as well as areas more specific to us and our situation. We did all the convos and prep via video call (great to minimize commuting time), and they have multiple locations for signing the final copies in person. We haven't used them for more detailed or custom work but will happily do so when the time comes, and have friends who have used them for this and are very happy. If you're looking into will, trust, or estate needs, would definitely suggest checking out Summerall Law!

I can't recommend the office of Yael Rakib enough. One of the most professional, thorough, and…read moregenuinely caring offices I've ever worked with. Over the past few years, I've worked with many different attorneys and offices, and Yael's office truly stands out as one of the best out there. The level of attention to detail, care, effort, and professionalism is exceptional. You can genuinely feel that she truly wants to help and make difficult situations better for her clients.

Let me start off by saying this: if Yelp had an "EXCEPTIONAL" star rating I would give it to Yael…read morewithout hesitation. Yael is everything you could possible want in an attorney - extremely efficient, fast, intelligent, and thorough - yet what sets her apart is her emotional intelligence and genuine support during an incredibly stressful time. She doesn't just handle the legal work; she shows up for her clients as a steady, reassuring presence. She is impeccably professional always arriving to court prepared and dressed to the highest standard, projecting confidence and authority. Yael is strong, decisive, and clearly knows exactly what she's doing - which comes from decades of experience and mastery of her field. You feel protected with Yael. You feel heard. And most importantly, you fee confident knowing you are in exceptionally capable hands. I cannot recommend her highly enough - worth every penny.

It was time to update our Will…read more Called EJ after a decade for an appointment for an updated Estate Plan & Will. She makes things so easy & really helps to make it easy for your heirs as most of us just do not know what a burden it is to close out an Estate when we "Depart". Enter EJ, smart as a whip and her former JAG Skills show in a heartbeat. I could go on & on & on.... But we are not waiting 10+ years again to do updates next time! If you want to make it easier on your family, see EJ for the best advice & Estate cordination ASAP!

My husband and I wanted to set up a trust and were recommended to EJ by our financial advisor. She…read morefirst set up a free phone consultation to walk us through the steps we'd need to take and give us an idea of pricing. We decided to go ahead and have her help us with estate planning. She is very knowledgeable, explains things in a clear manner, and really wants to help answer all your questions! EJ is not only professional but also very personable! We found her to be very easy to talk to, fun, and friendly. It is clear that she is passionate about her job. She also wants to get to know her clients as people, which we really appreciated. Don't hesitate to request a consultation with EJ!

Hiring Ashlee Gonzales was one of the best decisions we've made as landlords. We were dealing with…read morea stressful situation involving a rental property near the beach, and a tenant who was making aggressive demands and threatening legal action. We felt overwhelmed and unsure how to respond, until we met Ashlee. She was patient, reassuring, and incredibly knowledgeable. Ashlee listened closely, asked thoughtful questions, and then laid out a clear plan that protected us and kept the situation from escalating. She has a rare ability to combine legal expertise with practical common sense, and she guided us through every step with confidence and care. Her communication was excellent, her strategy was smart, and she consistently looked out for our best interests. Having her in our corner made all the difference. We also want to acknowledge Kelly Moir, who stepped in seamlessly whenever Ashlee was in court or unavailable. It was genuinely comforting to know that we had a second attorney fully up to speed and ready to jump in without missing a beat. That kind of redundancy, like getting two attorneys for the price of one, gave us peace of mind during a very tense time. Kelly was professional, responsive, and clearly part of a well‑coordinated team. Most importantly, Ashlee (and Kelly) made us feel protected. Instead of feeling bullied by someone who didn't understand the law and was trying to squeeze us for more than was reasonable, we felt supported by people who absolutely knew what they were doing. The final outcome was fair, reasonable, and far better than what we feared at the beginning. We couldn't be more grateful to Ashlee, Kelly, and the entire team at Brewer Offord & Pedersen.

Responsive, professional and helpful all the way! Property…read moresituations can be tricky - we've all rented and think we know the ropes. But there are regs and processes that I did not know. Also, deadlines; don't want it to drag on. Kelly and team were on it from the day I called. Explaining and walking me through. Legal representation is expensive to be sure: but such a relief to have authority when you need it. I learned a lot, and process wrapped up without drama.