John C. Martin

John C. Martin is the founder and principal attorney of the Law Offices of John C. Martin, P.C. in Palo Alto. He is certified as a Specialist in Estate Planning, Trust, and Probate Law by the California State Bar Board of Legal Specialization. John advises clients in estate planning, trust administration, probate, business succession planning, property tax planning, and trust and estate litigation. He has 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, California real property, subtrust allocation, and complex beneficiary issues. John represents families, trustees, executors, beneficiaries, business owners, commercial property owners, executives, venture capitalists, and professional advisors in matters involving substantial assets, fiduciary duties, tax-sensitive planning, California property tax issues, and disputes over trusts or estates. His litigation experience includes breach of fiduciary duty, breach of trust, trustee removal and suspension, surcharge, contested accountings, trust contests, contested conservatorships, elder abuse claims, and petitions involving trust property or trust interpretation. His practice combines estate and gift tax knowledge, sophisticated drafting experience, Probate Code depth, negotiation skill, and dispute-resolution judgment. John earned his undergraduate degree from UCLA, magna cum laude, his law degree from Boston College Law School, and a French diploma from Sciences Po in Paris. He speaks French fluently and has experience coordinating cross-border probate and administration matters involving Canada, Mexico, Asia, Europe, and French-language attorneys and notaries.