Estate planning attorney in Santa Clara.

Yes. The Law Offices of Robert P. Bergman is based at 3535 Ross Avenue in the Cambrian Park neighborhood of San Jose, roughly a 20 minute drive south of Santa Clara via Highway 101 or San Tomas Expressway. Bob has drafted estate plans, handled trust administration, and filed Heggstad and trust modification petitions for Santa Clara families for decades.

Trust petitions for Santa Clara residents are filed in the Probate Division of the Santa Clara County Superior Court, located at the Downtown Superior Courthouse, 191 North First Street, San Jose, California 95113. Bob files Heggstad petitions and trust modification petitions at this courthouse on behalf of Santa Clara families.

Santa Clara is home to Nvidia’s headquarters, a major Intel campus, Applied Materials, Marvell, and many other technology employers. Restricted stock units, incentive stock options, employee stock purchase plan shares, and post-vesting concentration are the most common planning topics. A Santa Clara estate plan often needs trust provisions for stock concentration, a coordinated beneficiary strategy for retirement and brokerage accounts, and a plan for unvested equity at death or disability.

Santa Clara home values have appreciated dramatically over the past two decades, which makes Prop 19 a planning concern for nearly every long-time homeowner. A child who inherits a Santa Clara home only keeps the parent’s low Prop 13 tax basis if the child uses the home as a primary residence within one year, and only the first $1 million of value above the parent’s assessed value is excluded. Bob runs the Prop 19 numbers for every Santa Clara client whose plan involves real property.

Most Santa Clara estate plans are signed within three to six weeks of the initial Plan Design Meeting. The schedule has four steps: the Plan Design Meeting itself, drafting and a draft review meeting, the signing appointment, and funding the trust by retitling assets. Many Santa Clara clients do the design and review meetings by Zoom and reserve a single in-person visit for the signing appointment.

A typical Santa Clara estate plan from the Law Offices of Robert P. Bergman includes a revocable living trust, a pour-over will, durable powers of attorney, and an advance health care directive. Final fees depend on complexity, asset structure (including stock concentration and equity compensation), and the planning needs of your family. Bob gives you a written fee estimate at the initial Plan Design Meeting.

Yes. Many Santa Clara clients meet with Bob by Zoom for the Plan Design Meeting and the draft review, then come down to the Ross Avenue office for the signing appointment because California law requires witnesses or notarization. Mobile notary services are available for clients with mobility constraints.