Top Best Estate Lawyers | 14177 Available

Sheila-Marie Finklestein is the Principal Attorney at AHAVA Law, P.C. She practices exclusively in Trusts, Estates, and Probate.. Prior to becoming an attorney, Sheila-Marie was an elementary school science teacher with Teach for America, a clerk for the U.S. Air Force Judge Advocate General’s Office, and served as an in-house counsel for a community hospital. These experiences taught her the importance of a well drafted and funded comprehensive estate plan. She helps clients with matters involving trusts, advance health care directive, trust administration, conservatorship, probate administration, etc.. Sheila-Marie serves on several community non profit boards, including the Orange County Women Lawyers Association, Orange County Jewish Bar Association, OCBA Veterans and Military Committee, and Veterans' Legal Institute. She also created and is the primary attorney for the VLI Estate Clinic, which provides pro bono estate services to service members and veterans.. She has received numerous accolades in appreciation of her charitbale service, including, the Proclamation Recognition from the City of Corona, Volunteer Recognition from the Orange County Bar Association, and recognition from the State of California for her work with Veterans.

I am a licensed attorney in the states of California and Maryland with years of professional experience across multiple sectors and industries.. I work with individuals, startups, and small businesses as an advisor, counselor, and advocate. I also work with families on estate planning issues to preserve wealth and ensure the smooth transition of assets between generations.

Dorothy Groza is a Los Angeles-based attorney, specializing in business litigation, real estate, employment law, wills and trusts, and dispute resolution.  Prior to launching Groza Law, Dorothy worked at a prominent firm in Orange County for several years where she handled all facets of complex civil litigation matters in federal and state courts.. Before entering civil practice, Dorothy served as a  law clerk for both the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office and Riverside District Attorney’s Office where she focused on writs & appeals.  Dorothy obtained her Juris Doctorate from Southwestern Law School’s prestigious S.C.A.L.E. program where she served as class president for two consecutive years, and co-founder of the Elder Law Advocacy program.. As an entrepreneur and small business owner herself, Dorothy understands the importance of minimizing expense to keep businesses growing.  As such, Dorothy is passionate about liability avoidance and early resolution of legal matters whenever possible.  Dorothy employs a holistic approach, looking at every client's present and anticipated legal needs to help avoid unnecessary legal disputes down the road.

My goal is assist families and individuals with the protection of their assets and to ensure your loved ones are provied for now and in the future.

I love the challenges that come with practicing law!  My clients know and appreciate that I give my full effort to achieve the best result in each and every case.  I have the unique opportunity to practice alongside my lovely wife, Scarlett, who is one of the best family law attorneys I have ever known.  We appreciate the opportunity to speak with you regarding you case!

Leah Jacobs is a partner at Jacobs Jacobs & Edmison, LLP.  Her primary practice areas are Business, Nonprofit, and Probate and Estate Planning.  Leah began her career in the Retail industry where she utilized her Communications degree in a management and supervisory capacity.  She then moved into the Multi-Family Housing industry, where she moved from Leasing Consultant to Assistant Manager, and eventually served as temporary Manager of an apartment complex.  Most recently, Leah has served as General Counsel for a manufacturing company in Fort Worth, Texas.. Leah has a continual desire to learn, in an effort to better assist her clients.  She is a member of the American Bar Association, Arkansas Bar Association, Texas Young Lawyers’ Association, State Bar of Texas, and is licensed to practice law by the State Bar of Texas and the Arkansas State Bar.. Born in Arkansas, Leah obtained her Bachelor of Arts in Speech Communication from Arkansas Tech University in 2003.  Leah earned her Juris Doctor from Texas Wesleyan University School of Law in 2010. While at Texas Wesleyan, she served as Vice-President and Board Member of the Night Students’ Association, was a founding member of the Student Ambassador Recruiting Team, and was a 1L mentor to incoming 1st year law students.. Leah is involved in local church activities and enjoys traveling, camping, and boating. She also enjoys reading, decorating and spending time with her husband Joshua and their 3 children.

Located in the Friendship Heights area of Washington, D.C. and minutes from the Montgomery County, Maryland border, Mr. Cohen’s practice focuses on estate planning, business planning, elder law, and planning for those with special needs. He is dedicated to helping individuals, families and small business owners protect the people they love and their hard-earned assets, plan for the future and cope during times of crisis.. Mr. Cohen believes that the best plans are the result of personal attention and close collaboration with his clients. He takes the time to listen carefully to his clients’ most pressing concerns and important goals, explain their options in clear, easy to understand language, and then design and implement a customized plan to meet all of their objectives. He strives to nurture long-term relationships with his clients and become their “Counselor for Life.”. Mr. Cohen is a graduate of Boston University, where he received his Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration in 1975. Prior to attending law school, he worked in the real estate industry in Boston, Massachusetts. In 1981 he received his Juris Doctor from the University of Miami Law School. He has been admitted to practice law in the District of Columbia, Maryland, Florida, Massachusetts and Illinois. He is also a member of the Trusts and Estates Section of the District of Columbia and Montgomery County Bar Associations.. Mr. Cohen has been a speaker before various professional groups on topics such as estate planning basics, advanced estate planning using life insurance, business succession planning, and matters related to seniors and their long-term care. He is actively involved in the local community and has supported several organizations.

Andre O. McDonald is the founder and principal attorney at McDonald Law Firm, a Columbia law firm serving clients throughout Howard County and the surrounding counties in the areas of estate planning, special needs planning, Medicaid/long-term care planning, and veterans pension planning.. Since Mr. McDonald was admitted to the Maryland Bar, in addition to managing a successful law practice, he has served as a volunteer attorney with the Pro Bono Resource Center of Maryland and the Bar Association of Baltimore City – Senior Legal Services, where he has helped Maryland low-income seniors with their estate planning needs. Mr. McDonald currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Howard County Estate Planning Council. In 2018, Mr. McDonald, was appointed by Governor Larry Hogan, Jr. to serve on the Virginia I. Jones Alzheimer’s and Related Disorders Council.. While in law school, Mr. McDonald served as a student attorney with the Washtenaw County Public Defender Office and the SixtyPlus, Inc., Elderlaw Clinic. At the Public Defender Office, Mr. McDonald advocated on behalf of indigent defendants charged with misdemeanors and felonies. Additionally, Mr. McDonald represented low-income seniors with a wide range of civil matters during his tenure with the SixtyPlus, Inc., Elderlaw Clinic. He also served as the court appointed guardianship reviewer for, the Circuit Court of Michigan for, Ingham County, Clinton County, and Eaton County. Mr. McDonald served as an Ambassador for the law school, mentoring newly-admitted first-year law students.. Prior to attending law school, Mr. McDonald served our nation as an Enlisted Officer with the United States Marine Corps. He also served for several years as a Federal Security Officer with the Department of Homeland Security where he trained new officers and mediated and resolved disputes regarding officer disciplinary action or officer-management matters. This breadth of experience helps Mr. McDonald deliver legal services and work with clients in a practical, goal-oriented manner.

Ms. Priya Prakash Royal, Esq., LL.M., MBA is an established tax and estate planning attorney focusing her practice in in tax law, trusts and estates, and business law.  She is the founder and Managing Attorney of the Royal Law Firm PLLC which has practices in the District of Columbia, New Jersey, New York, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and California. She was one of the first pioneers of operating a multi jurisdictional virtual law firm and has developed a robust practice representing clients effectively, efficiently, and securely globally.. In addition to being retained as legal counsel, she has served as an expert witness, has been published in trade journals and is a recognized speaker. She also brings an audit-proof perspective to tax planning and strategy as a former IRS Estate Tax Attorney.. She has structured estate and gift plans with Wills, living wills, powers of attorney and revocable trusts. She also has a sophistated estate planning practice with charitable planning, endowment agreements, irrevocable trusts such as life insurance trusts, charitable and grantor retained interest trusts and counseled clients on various tools including business succession  planning to minimize estate and gift tax. She has successfully disputed additional assessments by federal and state taxing authorities involving complex income and estate tax issues.. Ms. Royal is a recognized speaker and author, has held and holds leadership positions in multiple bar associations, and has been named Rising Star in 2021 by Super Lawyers.. She devotes significant time to pro bono service and on legal education. She also mentors law students, serves on the advisory board of a film and animation non-profit, Project Twenty1, and was instrumental in developing a nonprofit focused on narrowing the wealth gap, Powerful Progress.. She has provided pro bono services through various charitable organizations, including, Pro Bono Partnership, Partners for Women and Justice (helping victims of domestic abuse) and the Animal Legal Defense Fund (preventing cruelty to animals).. She resides in Northern Virginia, and actively practices in all five jurisdictions where she is admitted, including DC and MD. Originally from New Jersey and having resided in Pennsylvania through law school at Villanova, she continues to maintain and develop a strong client base in NY, NJ, and PA also. The Royal Law Firm has offices in DC, NYC, and CA. Client meetings are by appointment only and meetings can be scheduled at any of our office locations (DC, Brooklyn, San Francisco) and at the Bar Association conference centers. Conference room access also in New Jersey (New Brunswick), Philadelphia, and Manhattan.

I value my clients and endeavor to provide white glove care when dealing with their assets.. The following was an unsolicited client comment regarding a very interesting article that appeared in the Wall Street Journal! This Wall Street Journal article hit close to home. A family in Maryland ( a construction family) with all their millions failed to have a simple stipulation agreement as to how matters would be handled between members of their family when shopping for bank and investment advisors  When my client read this article.. He said that, "... they should have consulted with your firm and you could have navigated these treacherous waters for them!!! I am in awe that this family did not have a legal team like we have! It is unbelievable! You may want to keep this article and provide it to future clients as to real pitfalls with estate and business planning and how to navigate these issues." Wm.. The Wall Street Article is available upon request.

I am a real estate, business and employment lawyer in Washington, DC. My clients include local businesses, community associations, individuals and developers.