Estate planning is more than documents; it's about the plan for your assets, responsibilities, and legacy. We work together to develop instructions for how your important assets are managed if you're not managing them, how your vital responsibilities are cared for if you're not capable, and then how you wish to be remembered when you're no longer narrating the story.
Peace of mind of knowing your estate will be managed with the most ease and convenience possible. Ideal for high net worth individuals and families with significant assets or family complexities who want to address the impact of non-financial factors related to a family's successful legacy. Selecting the right attorney is one of the most important decisions you'll ever make.
Peace of mind of knowing your estate will be managed with the most ease and convenience possible. Ideal for high net worth individuals and families with significant assets or family complexities who want to address the impact of non-financial factors related to a family's successful legacy. Selecting the right attorney is one of the most important decisions you'll ever make.
Services
A Will-based plan is a collection of the lawfully minimum documents necessary to ensure that you choose the person who manages your affairs and your intended beneficiaries receive your assets. These documents are great when you are an individual or couple with a handful of accounts, no real property, no children (or adult children), no parents to take care of, and minimal legacy considerations.
Peace of mind of knowing your estate will be managed with the most ease and convenience possible. A Trust-based plan solves for the inefficiencies and publicity of the Will-based plan. Like a Will-based plan, we create a collection of documents designed to ensure that you choose the person who manages your affairs and your intended beneficiaries receive your assets.
Ideal for high net worth individuals and families with significant assets or family complexities who want to address the impact of non-financial factors related to a family's successful legacy. If you find yourself having done an estate plan, or at least having the documentation, but are looking for more, I can work with you and your family on taking your planning to a deeper, more harmonious level.
Michael is a senior estate planning attorney with a diverse background in estate, business and wealth advisory. Michael Blacksburg started practicing law in San Francisco in 2001, beginning his career as a tenants' rights attorney. In 2005, Michael discovered his passion for estate planning when he was asked by the AIDS Legal Referral Panel to be available for deathbed Wills.
Louis is Blacksburg Law's Director of Client Relations, acting as our boots on the ground in helping our clients finalize their estate plans. Through the estate planning process, Louis helps our clients with document execution, organizes their asset information and works to ensure that their assets are handled according to their plan.
Reviews (14)
Laura De Pedis
Nov 03, 2021
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Positive: Professionalism, Quality, Responsiveness, Value
The best estate attorney I have ever worked with. I needed someone to update my estate documents. It was too complex for a previous attorney, and Michael and his team were fantastic. Offered excellent advice, did great work, and had great follow up. I only wish I had found him sooner.
The best estate attorney I have ever worked with. I needed someone to update my estate documents. It was too complex for a previous attorney, and Michael and his team were fantastic. Offered excellent advice, did great work, and had great follow up. I only wish I had found him sooner.
L. A.
Oct 20, 2021
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Sydney Heller
Jul 23, 2021
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We are in our early 30s and were looking to setup a living trust and legacy protection for our child but did not really know where to start. We got a few recommendations from a friend, but none of them panned out because of cost, lack of responsiveness, or us having a "bad feeling" about some attorneys. We found Michael on Yelp and could not be more happy!
Michael and Louis have an amazing philosophy, are extremely helpful and personable, and inspire so much confidence.
We came to them knowing very little of what we needed or how to accomplish it, but knowing our end goal of securing our legacy
Michael and Louis have an amazing philosophy, are extremely helpful and personable, and inspire so much confidence.
We came to them knowing very little of what we needed or how to accomplish it, but knowing our end goal of securing our legacy
Eric M.
Jul 09, 2021
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Michael and team are excellent. For anyone looking for estate planning services, look no further. They're professional yet friendly and understanding. Michael patiently helped us think through a multitude of scenarios and helped us pull together everything needed. Execution with Louis was a pleasure - we signed at our home.
Lisa K.
May 08, 2021
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Michael helped walk us through the process of establishing a trust and was very patient as we took our time reviewing docs. He made several suggestions to help us make sure we were protected as my partner and I are unmarried and have children from a previous relationship. Getting our paperwork signed with Louis was simple and he explained each step thoroughly. We highly recommend Blacksburg Law!
Ryan Joseph V.
Dec 11, 2020
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High touchpoint and white glove experience. Michael and Louis are wonderful partners to work with. I reached out since it's my first time, as well as my father's on planning his estate planning, probate, and trust. Quick note here, my family and I immigrated to the U.S. in the 80's. For us, planning something like this experience was completely new. Michael and Louis were deeply informative as we went through life planning for my father. I'm grateful to have had this experience with them. Not only that, but what I appreciate is that this isn't purely a transactional experience
Jonathan B.
Dec 02, 2020
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A very smooth and fully professional interaction, conducted entirely via video call (except for the actual signing/notarization, of course)--Michael took an existing Living Trust and fixed it, he was available and willing to work toward a satisfying conclusion, and took the time to explain the choices and connections that needed to be made.
Pam L.
Nov 30, 2020
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Laura Peterson
Nov 25, 2020
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For anyone (like me) who has put off getting their estate planning in order, I cannot recommend Michael Blacksburg enough! He gave me such wise and compassionate advice about everything I needed to think about, what documents I need to have in place, how to make my affairs easy on my kids and family and what kind of legacy I want to leave. The process was so easy and Michael and his associate, Louis Knox, are an absolute pleasure to work with! I would give 10 stars if I could!
Oren Jaffe
Nov 09, 2020
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We loved working with Michael Blacksburg for our living trust and estate planning. We contacted him for some estate planning after our second child was born. Michael walked us through what our ideal scenarios would be for managing our assets and taking care of our kids. He then helped us figure out the types of conversations we needed to have with our families (and each other), he advised us on what kind of information we needed to organize, and then he put the necessary documents in place. His colleague Louis came to our house for the document signing. We were impressed that Louis had a full binder
Michael Bolgatz
Nov 06, 2020
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Positive: Professionalism, Quality, Responsiveness, Value
Michael was wonderful. He was thorough and detail oriented. We talked a bunch about my family, which has some complications, and came up with something that I feel really good about. I'm honestly so happy that not only did I get this off my chest; but that I was guided by someone who cares deeply about getting it right.
Michael was wonderful. He was thorough and detail oriented. We talked a bunch about my family, which has some complications, and came up with something that I feel really good about. I'm honestly so happy that not only did I get this off my chest; but that I was guided by someone who cares deeply about getting it right.
Steven Shapiro
Oct 07, 2020
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My wife and I had put off our life planning for a long time. Then my mother passed away and it was my job to find a lawyer. I had very limited experience in dealing with lawyers. All I knew was that they were expensive, and time consuming and it cost you money every time you talked to them. Boy was I relieved when I reached out to Michael Blacksburg. He sent us a questionnaire to fill out. Then we sat in front of a computer and spoke to him online for a few hours and that was it! The most painless and reasonable priced living Trust we could of gone through. Michael was patient when we asked the
Zach Holman
Oct 01, 2020
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Had a great experience. Michael is really helpful at getting you in the mindset of thinking about these admittedly tricky problems. There's no real right answer when thinking about your estate, and Michael is a big help at asking the right questions so that you can discover what the best approach is for you.
And Louis is fantastic to work with, too. His attention to detail puts everyone else to shame, haha. Made it so much easier to make it across the finish line at the end.
And Louis is fantastic to work with, too. His attention to detail puts everyone else to shame, haha. Made it so much easier to make it across the finish line at the end.
Heidi Gibson
Aug 21, 2020
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