San Francisco Office
Proudly Serving San Francisco and the
surrounding communities in the Bay
Best Estate Planning Attorneys in San Francisco, California
Experienced Estate Planning attorneys in San Francisco, California, specializing in California Living Trusts
About CunninghamLegal, San Francisco
Wherever you happen to live, partnering with the right attorney is a crucial step in estate planning, tax planning, and trust administration. From our San Francisco office, we help individuals, families, trustees, and business owners with Estate Planning, Trust Administration, Business Law, and Tax Planning.
Whether you need to create or update a Living Trust, administer a trust after the death of a loved one, plan for estate and gift taxes, or coordinate your estate plan with other tax planning strategies, our attorneys provide practical guidance built around California and federal law.
Planning a Visit?
IMPORTANT: Staffed only by appointment.
While our San Francisco location remains available in exceptional circumstances, we now primarily serve clients at our San Rafael, Walnut Creek and Oakland offices. Our fully staffed offices offer the best client experience and are open 9am-5pm. We can provide full service through video calling on Zoom, email, and phone.
50 California St
Suite 1500
San Francisco, CA 94111
Phone: (866) 988-3956
Hours: Staffed only by appointment.
Clients We Serve in San Francisco
- We represent families, individuals, professionals, celebrities, and businesses of all sizes and asset levels
- We review and update estate planning documents, including Wills, Living Trusts, Health Care Directives, and Powers of Attorney
- We support clients after the loss of a loved one, providing stability and guidance
- We assist with Trust Administration and help new Trustees understand their responsibilities and help protect themselves and fulfill their duties
- We help business owners structure, manage, and transition their companies while integrating them into their estate plans
Practice Areas
Find The Right Path For You
CunninghamLegal helps individuals, families, and business owners plan with confidence through thoughtful, comprehensive planning and trusted guidance. While our core focus is estate planning, trust administration, tax planning, and business planning, we also guide clients through asset protection, special needs planning, real estate matters, Proposition 19 planning, and more.
Part of the San Francisco Community
Our San Francisco Estate Planning office, headed by our CEO and founder Jim Cunningham, serves clients throughout the Bay Area and its nearby communities, including North Beach, Financial District, Nob Hill, South of Market (SoMa), Fisherman’s Wharf, Chinatown, and surrounding neighborhoods.
CunninghamLegal maintains a San Francisco location where our Estate Planning attorneys can be available to meet with clients by appointment. We serve individuals and families throughout San Francisco who need help creating and updating Living Trusts, planning for incapacity, protecting their property, and preparing for how their assets will eventually pass to the people they care about.
There really is no place quite like San Francisco. Ghirardelli Square brings together the city’s waterfront history with the shops and chocolate it’s known for today. The Golden Gate Bridge has become one of the most recognizable landmarks anywhere in the world. And PIER 39, with its waterfront views, shops, restaurants, and famous sea lions, captures some of the energy that draws people to San Francisco from around the world. These landmarks may be known around the world, but they’re also part of the city where our San Francisco clients live, own property, raise families, build businesses, and plan for the future.
Estate planning is personal, and every family is different. Having a San Francisco location gives our clients the option to meet with an experienced CunninghamLegal attorney here in the city when an in-person meeting makes sense. Our job is to understand your situation, explain your options in plain English, and help you get the details right.
Looking to Continue the Legacy of a San Francisco Estate Planning Practice
CunninghamLegal has a long history of helping established estate planning attorneys transition their practices when it is time to retire, step back, or plan for the next chapter. While we have acquired and successfully transitioned practices throughout California, we are actively interested in expanding that legacy in San Francisco.
For an attorney who has spent decades building a practice, retirement is not simply about closing the office door. There are clients to care for, files to maintain, staff to consider, and a professional reputation that may have taken an entire career to build. CunninghamLegal understands that responsibility because we have handled these transitions many times before.
If you are a San Francisco estate planning attorney considering retirement, selling your law practice, merging with another firm, or developing a succession plan, we would welcome a confidential conversation. Depending on your goals, a transition may involve transferring your practice to CunninghamLegal or continuing to practice with our firm while leaving behind the responsibilities of running the business.
Our goal is straightforward: protect the legacy you built while giving your clients an experienced California estate planning team they can continue to rely on. Learn more about selling or transitioning your estate planning practice on our Sell Your Practice page.
Estate Planning in San Francisco County
Estate planning works differently depending on where you live in California, and San Francisco has its own realities, particularly when it comes to probate, real estate, and property taxes.
Probate matters for San Francisco residents are generally handled through the San Francisco Superior Court. If someone passes away with assets that are not properly held in a Living Trust or otherwise transferred outside probate, the family may have to go through the court process. In a city where even a fairly ordinary home can represent a substantial estate, avoiding unnecessary probate can be an important part of planning ahead.
Real estate is often at the center of estate planning in San Francisco. Longtime homeowners may own property that has appreciated dramatically over decades, sometimes with a very low property tax basis compared with its current value. That makes Living Trusts, Proposition 19, property tax reassessment, capital gains and basis planning, and decisions about whether children will keep or sell inherited property especially important.
We work with San Francisco homeowners, professionals, business owners, trustees, and families with significant real estate and investment assets. Some have relatively straightforward estates. Others have rental properties, businesses, retirement accounts, or assets worth millions of dollars. Either way, the details matter. A good estate plan should reflect the family, property, taxes, and real-world circumstances it is actually meant to protect.
Why Choose CunninghamLegal for Estate Planning and Trust Administration in San Francisco?
Estate planning is not one-size-fits-all, and neither is Trust Administration. Every family is different. Every set of assets is different. And when someone passes away, every Trust seems to come with its own set of questions. That’s why experience matters.
We know California estate and trust law. Our San Francisco office is headed by Jim Cunningham, our founder and CEO. Jim is a Certified Specialist in Estate Planning, Trust and Probate Law, certified by the State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization, and has practiced for more than 30 years.
We help you plan before there’s a problem. The best time to do estate planning is before you need it. We help you think through the “what ifs” now (what if you can’t make financial or health care decisions for yourself, what happens when you pass away, who steps in, and how your family will be protected). Then we make sure your Living Trust, Powers of Attorney, real estate, financial accounts, business interests, and beneficiary designations all work together.
We’re here when the plan has to work. Not every estate planning attorney handles Trust Administration after someone passes away, but we do. If a loved one has passed away and you are the Trustee, you may suddenly be responsible for assets, taxes, beneficiaries, and distributions—all while dealing with a loss. Our Trust Administration attorneys help you understand your responsibilities and guide you through the process from beginning to end.
We look at the whole picture. Estate Planning and Trust Administration can involve tax issues, real estate, businesses, Proposition 19, asset protection, and family dynamics. You want an attorney who can spot those issues and understand how the pieces fit together. An experienced attorney may see nuances that someone with less experience simply doesn’t see.
If you need to create or update an estate plan (or you’re a Trustee wondering, “What do I do now?”) give us a call. We can meet with you at our office, by phone, or by Zoom. Call (866) 988-3956 or book an appointment online.
We look forward to working with you!
Estate planning is personal. And when you’re administering a trust after someone has passed away, it can be personal and difficult. These are important moments for a family, and we don’t take lightly the trust you place in us to help you through them.
It would be an honor to work with you and your family. Whether you’re planning ahead or you’re a Trustee trying to figure out what comes next, our job is to help you understand your options, pay attention to the details, and get the right plan in place—or the trust properly administered.
Make an appointment to meet with attorneys at CunninghamLegal for Estate Planning and Trust Administration and get a consultation to discuss your finances and estate. We offer in-person, phone, and Zoom appointments. Just call (866) 988-3956, or book an appointment online.
FAQ: Estate Planning in San Francisco
Anyone who wants to avoid probate, protect assets, or provide clear instructions for their family may benefit from a California Living Trust. It’s especially useful for San Francisco homeowners, business owners, and families with multiple properties. A longtime family home in Noe Valley or the Richmond District, a rental property in the Mission, or a small multi-unit building can represent a significant part of a family’s wealth. A properly funded Living Trust can help keep those assets out of probate and make the eventual transfer to the next generation much easier.
A trustee manages the Trust after the grantor’s death or incapacity. Our team guides trustees in San Francisco through the legal responsibilities, paperwork, and decision-making to help protect both the trust and beneficiaries.
You should review your estate plan after major life events like marriage, divorce, the birth of a child, or significant changes in assets, or at least every 3-5 years to stay aligned with current California laws. In San Francisco County, rising property values are the trigger most often missed. CunninghamLegal can also assist with lodging a will at the appropriate courthouse after a death, including the San Francisco Superior Court.
After the loss of a loved one, the family usually needs to either administer the Trust or open probate, depending on what the person left behind. Our San Francisco office guides families through trust administration, probate, dissolving a trust, and estate settlement, including probate filed at the Civic Center Courthouse off of McAllister Street, so your loved one’s wishes are carried out and your family can be protected.
Estate planning in San Francisco costs a fraction of what probate costs. Likewise, a plan built around a single Living Trust costs less than one involving a business, a blended family, or tax planning. Please contact us so we can learn more about the type of planning you are looking for.
California sets probate fees by statute, and the attorney and the executor each receive the same amount, so the estate pays it twice. The fee is calculated on the gross value of what you own rather than your equity, so a mortgage does not reduce it.
San Francisco County sits in a very different spot than most of California. Since April 2025, a primary residence worth $750,000 or less can pass through a simplified court petition instead of full probate. With the median San Francisco County home selling for approximately $1.4 Million, many San Francisco-area homes may already be above that threshold based on the residence alone.
Probate can get expensive quickly. On a $1.4 Million probate estate in 2026, California’s statutory fees for the attorney and executor can total approximately $54,000. And remember, the home may be only part of the picture. A rental property, second home, or other assets subject to probate can add to the value of the estate. A properly funded Living Trust can help keep those assets out of probate, regardless of the value of the home.
Bring an idea of what you own and who you want it to go to for your first meeting with an estate planning attorney. In practice that means property deeds, recent account statements, business documents, life insurance policies, and any will or trust you already have. Also come with names in mind for the people who would make medical and financial decisions for you, because that is the question most people have not thought about before the first meeting.
Yes, you can meet with a San Francisco estate planning attorney by phone or video. Our San Francisco office offers in-person, phone, and Zoom appointments. If getting to the office is difficult, or you would rather start with a conversation before committing to a visit, a remote appointment works the same way.
Request a Call with a Client Specialist
Our Client Specialists (non-attorney) are here to learn about your goals and schedule you with the appropriate CunninghamLegal attorney who can best serve your unique situation.
Ready to speak with someone now? Call our office: (866) 988-3956