Our Team

John C. Martin, Esq.

Principal Attorney

John C. Martin is the founder and principal of the Law Offices of John C. Martin, P.C., a Palo Alto law firm focused on estate planning, trust administration, probate, business succession planning, property tax planning, and trust and estate litigation.

John is certified as a specialist in Estate Planning, Trust, and Probate Law by the California State Bar Board of Legal Specialization and has practiced for nearly two decades. He has prepared more than 2,000 estate plans and administered hundreds of trusts, including matters involving estate and gift tax returns, IRS estate tax audits, sub-trust funding, basis planning, business succession, commercial real estate, and complex fiduciary administration.

John’s practice is distinguished by a rare combination of tax knowledge, drafting skill, Probate Code experience, and dispute-resolution judgment. He advises business owners, real estate owners, executives, venture capitalists, trustees, beneficiaries, and families with complex assets or high-conflict fiduciary issues.

In litigation, John has guided cases through trial and contested proceedings involving elder abuse, breach of fiduciary duty, trustee removal and suspension, surcharge, contested accountings, contested conservatorships, breach of trust, and trust contests. His approach combines technical trust and probate knowledge with practical negotiation strategy and a focus on resolving disputes in a way that protects the client’s broader financial and family objectives.

John also advises commercial property owners and second-home owners on California property tax planning, including Proposition 19 issues, reassessment risk, parent-child transfers, and estate planning for real property. His work has included planning for car dealership owners, restaurant-chain owners, gas station owners, industrial company owners, large commercial property owners, Fortune 500 executives, venture capitalists, and families with domestic and international assets.

John earned his undergraduate degree from UCLA, magna cum laude, his law degree from Boston College Law School, and a French diploma from Sciences Po in Paris. He speaks French fluently and has experience coordinating cross-border probate and administration matters involving Canada, Mexico, Asia, Europe, and French-language attorneys and notaries.

More about John C. Martin

Edward C. Nino

Senior Attorney – Trust & Estate Litigation

Edward Nino brings substantial litigation experience, backed by more than 40 years of courtroom practice and first-chaired over 100 jury trials and over 500 bench trials and contested hearings. Over the course of his career, Edward has represented trustees, executors, and beneficiaries in matters requiring both litigation and negotiation, working diligently to resolve complex family and business conflicts.

Kaitlyn Wong

Paralegal

Kaitlyn Wong provides our office with paralegal support in estate planning, trust, and probate matters.

Vanessa Garcia

Administration/Financial Accounting

Vanessa Garcia handles office administration/financial accounting and is the client contact for questions about invoices, retainers, deposits and payments.