Careers

We are looking for a lawyer with three or more years of significant experience in advising on the U.S. aspects of international income tax matters, preferably working with private clients but corporate experience would also be of interest. The work includes giving advice and also drafting documents. You will gain a broad range of experience in cross-border tax and estate planning matters. Plentiful training will be available both within the firm and by attending conferences and seminars.

Foreign language skills are not a requirement but we are interested in a candidate with strong foreign language skills. The languages we particularly seek are Mandarin Chinese, Spanish, and French but we are also interested in German, Italian, Korean, and Japanese. Knowledge of foreign law is not required, but we would consider a lawyer qualified in another country, so long as he or she has the required technical tax background and a U.S. bar admission, preferably in California.

We offer an attractive package of benefits, flexible working arrangements, and reasonable billable hour requirements that make it possible for our lawyers to develop their careers.

ESSENTIAL JOB DUTIES

• Ability to assist in the drafting of estate planning and trust administration documents;
• Prior experience preparing asset lists, analyzing bank and business records, identifying trust and non-trust assets, and identifying title and character of assets
• Ability to meet and communicate with clients and client advisors;
• Experience assisting clients with trust funding and preparing documents to effect same, including (a) preparation and recordation of deeds with accompanying transfer documents and (b) assignments of interests in business entities, with appropriate subsequent filings with California BOE;
• Ability to prepare and assemble federal estate tax returns and gift tax returns, obtain date-of-death valuations independently, including strong working knowledge of marital and charitable deduction rules and allocation of generation-skipping transfer tax exemption;
• Knowledge of Probate Court process including court filings, including for example, petitions for instructions, Probate Code Sections 850 petitions, petitions to approve accountings, etc.;
• Familiarity with Probate Code notice requirements and ability to manage calendar notice deadlines;
• Managing trust and probate administration case matter and deadlines;
• Determining beneficiaries and persons entitled to notice; and
• Knowledge of court-supervised procedures to transfer property without probate (including spousal property petitions, Heggstad petitions, and affidavits regarding real property of small value).
• Have experience preparing both forms 706 and 709, meaning can independently manage the process, by obtaining a complete list of assets, ensuring the proper valuation of same, and experience inputting onto the forms in GEMS.
• Ability to calendar critical deadlines and meetings and make sure attorneys meet all deadlines.

EDUCATION

• Paralegal Certificate required

SKILLS

• Must have 5+ years as a paralegal in estate planning and administration
• Knowledge of Microsoft Office Suite, Excel and Judicial Council Forms
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Ability to work independently and meet deadlines
• Flexibility to adapt quickly to changing priorities
• Ability to interact professionally with individuals across all organizational levels