en English
en Englishes Spanish
estate planning lawyer Marin County
Facebook-f Yelp Envelope

Estate Planning Attorney in Mill Valley, CA | Matthew W. Harris, Esq., LLM

You’ve worked hard for everything you have. Your home near the Mt. Tamalpais foothills, your retirement accounts, your business, your family. But without a solid estate plan, the people you love could face months of court proceedings, unnecessary taxes, and painful conflict — all while grieving.

That’s where Matthew W. Harris, Esq., LLM comes in. As a licensed California estate planning attorney with an advanced LLM (Master of Laws) degree, Matthew serves families and business owners throughout Mill Valley, Marin County, and the greater Bay Area. His focus is simple: help you protect what matters most, on your terms.

What Is Estate Planning — and Why Does It Matter in Mill Valley?

Estate planning is the legal process of deciding how your assets are managed and distributed if you become incapacitated or pass away. It covers everything from who raises your children to who gets your vacation property in Tiburon.

Here’s something most Mill Valley residents don’t realize: with a median home value of roughly $2.2 million, virtually every homeowner in this area will be subject to California’s probate process without a proper plan in place. As of April 2025, California requires formal probate for estates over $208,850. Probate can take 12 to 18 months and cost $46,000 or more in statutory fees on a $1 million estate.

A well-structured estate plan sidesteps all of that. It keeps your family out of court, preserves more of your legacy, and gives you full control while you’re alive.

Who Needs an Estate Plan?

Honestly, everyone. But here are some situations where it becomes especially urgent:

  • You own a home in Mill Valley, Sausalito, Corte Madera, or anywhere in Marin County
  • You have children under 18
  • You’re married or in a domestic partnership
  • You have a blended family with children from a previous relationship
  • You own a business or professional practice
  • You have retirement accounts, life insurance, or investment accounts
  • You have a family member with special needs
  • You’ve recently gone through a major life change — marriage, divorce, new baby, or death of a spouse

If your current estate plan is more than three to five years old, it’s probably time for a review. Laws change. Life changes. Your plan should reflect both.

Estate Planning Services in Mill Valley, CA

Matthew W. Harris, Esq., LLM offers a full range of estate planning services designed to fit your life and goals — whether you’re a young family in Tamalpais Valley, a retiree near Depot Plaza, or a business owner along the Miller Avenue corridor.

Last Will and Testament

A will tells the world exactly what you want. Who gets your assets, who manages your estate, and if you have minor children, who takes care of them. Without one, California’s intestate succession laws decide all of this for you.

Revocable Living Trust

A revocable living trust is the foundation of most estate plans in California. It keeps your estate out of probate, protects your privacy (wills become public record; trusts don’t), and lets your loved ones access assets quickly after your death. It’s also flexible — you stay in full control and can update it anytime.

Irrevocable Trust

Once established, an irrevocable trust generally can’t be changed. That’s actually the point. It can shield assets from creditors, reduce estate tax exposure, and qualify you for Medi-Cal benefits down the road. For high-net-worth families in Marin County, this is often a key tool for multi-generational wealth planning.

Durable Power of Attorney

This document names someone you trust to make financial decisions if you’re ever incapacitated — paying bills, managing investments, filing taxes. Without it, your family may need to go to court to get a conservatorship. That’s expensive and slow.

Healthcare Directive and Advance Healthcare Directive

Also called a living will, this tells your doctors what kind of medical care you want if you can’t speak for yourself. It also names a healthcare agent who makes decisions on your behalf. Every adult in California should have one. It’s not morbid — it’s a gift to your family.

Pour-Over Will

Used alongside a living trust, a pour-over will acts as a safety net. Any assets you forgot to transfer into your trust during your lifetime get “poured over” into it at death, so nothing falls through the cracks.

Guardianship Designation

If you have kids under 18, this is non-negotiable. A guardianship designation names who raises your children if something happens to you. Leaving this decision up to a judge is not a plan.

Special Needs Trust

If you have a family member with a disability, a special needs trust lets you leave them money without disqualifying them from government benefits like SSI or Medi-Cal. Getting this wrong can cost them their benefits entirely.

Business Succession Planning

Own a business? What happens to it if you die or can’t work? A business succession plan answers that question before it becomes a crisis. Matthew works with Mill Valley business owners and entrepreneurs to protect their companies and the people who depend on them.

Supporting Services

Beyond the core documents, Matthew also helps clients with:

  • Trust administration after the death of a loved one
  • Probate avoidance planning for existing assets
  • Beneficiary designation reviews for IRAs, 401(k)s, and life insurance
  • Estate tax planning using federal exemptions and gifting strategies
  • Medicaid and elder law planning for long-term care needs
  • Charitable remainder trusts for clients who want to give back
  • Community property agreements for married couples
  • Asset protection planning for real estate, business interests, and digital assets

California Estate Planning Laws You Should Know

California has some of the most complex estate laws in the country. Here are a few things that matter specifically to Mill Valley residents:

Probate costs are high. Under the California Probate Code, attorney and executor fees are calculated on the gross value of the estate — not the net value. That means a home with a $2 million value but a $1.5 million mortgage still gets fees calculated on $2 million.

The new AB 2016 simplification helps some families. As of April 2025, California now allows simplified transfer procedures for primary residences valued under $750,000. But most Mill Valley homes exceed that. A funded living trust still offers the most reliable probate protection.

Community property laws apply. California is a community property state. That affects how your assets are classified, how they’re taxed at death (the step-up in basis rules can save your heirs significant capital gains taxes), and how they pass to your spouse.

The SECURE Act 2.0 changed retirement account planning. If you’re leaving IRAs or 401(k)s to non-spouse beneficiaries, the rules around required minimum distributions have shifted significantly. Your estate plan needs to account for this.

AB 1885 expanded California’s homestead exemption. Mill Valley homeowners now have stronger automatic protections for their primary residence against creditors — but this doesn’t replace a proper estate plan.

Why Work with Matthew W. Harris, Esq., LLM?

There are plenty of attorneys in the Bay Area who can draft a will. Here’s what makes Matthew different.

Advanced credentials. An LLM (Master of Laws) is a postgraduate legal degree held by a small fraction of attorneys. It signals deep, specialized study beyond the standard J.D. That matters when you’re dealing with complex estate tax issues, trust structures, or multi-generational planning.

Local knowledge. Matthew understands the specific challenges facing Marin County residents — the high property values, the concentration of business owners and tech professionals, the unique community property issues, and the real estate market that makes probate avoidance so critical.

One-on-one attention. You work directly with Matthew, not a paralegal or junior associate. Every client gets personalized counsel, not a form-filled template.

Transparent pricing. Flat-fee estate planning packages mean no billing surprises. You’ll know the cost upfront.

Attorney-client privilege. Everything you share is completely confidential.

Free initial consultation. You can talk through your situation before making any commitment.

Matthew serves clients across Mill Valley and throughout Marin County, including San Rafael, Sausalito, Corte Madera, Larkspur, Tiburon, Belvedere, Novato, San Anselmo, Fairfax, Greenbrae, Ross, and Kentfield — as well as clients in San Francisco and the broader North Bay Area.

Take the First Step

Most people put off estate planning because it feels complicated or uncomfortable. It doesn’t have to be either. One conversation with Matthew W. Harris, Esq., LLM is all it takes to understand where you stand and what you actually need.

Mill Valley families deserve a plan that works as hard as they do. Let’s build yours.

Matthew W. Harris, Esq., LLM Estate Planning Attorney — Mill Valley, CA Serving Marin County, the North Bay, and greater San Francisco Bay Area

Frequently Asked Questions

In California, probably yes. A will alone does not avoid probate. If your estate exceeds $208,850 in value (which includes most Mill Valley homes), your family will likely have to go through a public, costly, and time-consuming court process before they receive anything. A properly funded revocable living trust keeps your estate out of probate entirely and can save your family tens of thousands of dollars.

It depends on the complexity of your estate. A basic estate plan — trust, will, power of attorney, and healthcare directive — typically ranges from a few thousand dollars for a simple plan to more for complex, high-net-worth situations. Matthew offers flat-fee packages so you know exactly what you’re paying before work begins. Schedule a free consultation to get a clear picture.

California’s intestate succession laws take over. The state decides who gets your assets based on a fixed formula that has nothing to do with your wishes. If you have minor children and no will naming a guardian, a judge picks who raises them. If you’re unmarried and own property with someone, they may get nothing. It’s a situation that’s almost always more expensive and painful than doing the planning now.

You can, but there are real risks. Online templates don’t know your specific situation, your assets, or California law. A will that isn’t properly signed and witnessed isn’t legally valid in California. A trust that isn’t properly funded offers no probate protection at all. And if something is wrong, your family won’t find out until after you’re gone — when fixing it isn’t possible. An attorney who focuses exclusively on estate planning is worth it.

Quite possibly. Estate tax laws have changed. California probate thresholds have changed. The SECURE Act changed retirement account rules. If you’ve bought or sold property, had children or grandchildren, gone through a divorce or remarriage, or if your financial picture has shifted significantly, your plan likely needs a review. Trusts that aren’t updated can fail to account for new laws or new family members — sometimes with costly results.

They cover different areas. A durable power of attorney handles financial and legal decisions — paying your bills, managing your investments, signing contracts on your behalf. A healthcare directive (also called an advance directive or living will) covers medical decisions — what treatment you want, what you don’t want, and who speaks for you when you can’t. You need both. A lot of people think having one covers the other. It doesn’t.

Yes, though for a different reason. Retirement accounts and life insurance pass directly to your named beneficiaries, bypassing your will and trust entirely. That’s actually a good thing — but it means your beneficiary designations need to be correct, current, and coordinated with the rest of your estate plan. Naming a minor child directly on a retirement account can create serious problems. Naming an ex-spouse can be an expensive mistake. Matthew reviews beneficiary designations as part of every estate plan.

LEGAL DISCLAIMER:

The information on this website is for general information purposes only. Nothing on this site should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation. This information is not intended to create, and receipt or viewing does not constitute, in any way an attorney-client relationship. Matthew W. Harris, Esq., LL.M is a California lawyer in good standing with the State Bar of California. Matthew W. Harris is admitted to practice only in California. Mr. Harris is not licensed to practice in any other jurisdiction.