Julie King

With 30+ years’ experience, Julie King practices law with the highest standards of ethics and professionalism. She is easy to speak with and talks in plain English (not legalese). Julie handles a wide variety of estate planning and business matters including: (1) ESTATE PLANNING - wills and trusts, health care directives, powers of attorney, special needs trusts, pet trusts, grant deeds and more; and (2) BUSINESS LAW - corporation/LLC/partnership formation, annual meeting minutes, corporate records, contracts, and employee training.

Julie served as in-house counsel to major international corporations, including Toshiba America, where she worked for 15 years and hired lawyers throughout the world. She has been a "client", so she understands clients' needs in a way many lawyers do not. Contact Julie today and see the difference!

Call or email today for a FREE initial consultation! (831) 275-1002 Julie@PierceKingLaw.com

• Form Corporations, LLCs and Partnerships
• Business Transactions & Contracts
• Trusts, Wills, Powers of Attorney, Health Care Directives
• Real Estate Grant Deeds and Related Documentation

• Free Consultation
• Credit Cards Accepted
• Rates, Retainers and Additional Information
  Pierce King, P.C. bills hourly or charges a flat fee, depending on the type of matter.

California

Since 1987

Founding Attorney

Pierce King, P.C., a Professional Law Corporation

2012 - Current

BUSINESS LAW - Negotiating and drafting a variety of complex business contracts, including an international Private Cloud Infrastructure and Management Services Agreement and a Funding Agreement involving the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. - Forming C and S Corporations, LLCs and Partnerships, and drafting documents related thereto, such as Buy-Sell and Operating Agreements, Bylaws, Annual Meeting Minutes and Board Resolutions. ESTATE PLANNING - Drafting a variety of wills and trusts (including Revocable Living Trusts, Special Needs Trusts and Pet Trusts), Health Care Directives and Durable Powers of Attorney, as well as Grant Deeds and other documentation relating to funding trusts. - Counseling clients in Trust Administration matters - Preparing, filing and representing clients in Probate actions

Director, Contracts and Intellectual Property

CTB/McGraw-Hill LLC

2007 - 2012

Assistant General Counsel

Toshiba America

1991 - 2006

Julie was an in-house counsel for Toshiba for 15 years and handled a wide variety of matters for the corporation. She helped the Human Resources Dept. with employment matters and policy drafting, the Sales Dept. with contracts, the Finance Dept. with guaranties, and anyone else in the company who needed assistance in any area of law. She would be honored to do the same for you. Call today!

Univ of California at Los Angeles

Undergraduate Degree

Loyola Law School

Law Degree

BEST LAWYER IN MONTEREY COUNTY!

Monterey Herald Reader's Poll

2025

BEST LAWYER IN MONTEREY COUNTY

Monterey Herald Readers' Poll

2024

BEST LAWYER IN MONTEREY COUNTY

Monterey Herald Readers' Poll

2023

BEST LAW FIRM IN MONTEREY COUNTY

Monterey Herald Readers' Poll

2023

Volunteer of the Year

Monterey Peninsula Chamber of Commerce

2023

IMPOWER (Businesswomen inspiring each other and helping our community)

Vice President of the Board of Directors

2021 - Current

Monterey County Bar Association

Member

2007 - Current

California State Bar  # 132813

Member

1987 - Current

Monterey Peninsula Chamber of Commerce

Ambassador

2014 - 2024

Central Coast Human Resources Association

Member of the Board of Directors

2019 - 2022

License to Practice Law

California Bar Association

Q. Steps for transferring property title and setting up a living trust in CA for joint tenancy after probate.

July 2, 2025

A: Your parent should not transfer her real estate until she understands all the tax consequences of doing so — including both capital gains and property tax consequences of such transfers. You are wise to tell your parent that she needs a trust so her children (including you) will not have to spend 3 - 4 years in Probate Court after she passes away. However, trusts and all the other legal documents needed for an estate plan should not be prepared by people without legal training. One reason is that using plain English words in estate plans often causes more problems than they solve. For example, the word “issue” is a legal term of art that means someone’s descendants starting with their children, then grandchildren, then great-grandchildren, etc. all the way down the line. Without knowing the legal definitions of the words they use, people drafting estate plans could easily write a document that, legally, means something completely different than what they think it means. Judges will not guess what someone might have meant. Instead, judges will use the legal definitions of words and interpret the language as written. Plus, there are many different types trusts starting with revocable trusts and irrevocable trusts. A lawyer would not know what type of trust a person needed until the lawyer spoke with the person. Also, trusts are complex documents that cover a variety of issues, so they are often 50+ pages long. It would be impossible to teach someone how to write one in this forum. Not only that, once the trust is written, certain assets must be placed in the trust and few people know how to do that. For all of these reasons and more, I strongly suggest your parent contacts a knowledgeable estate planning attorney so the plan is set up correctly. Best wishes! ... Read More

Q. Can I submit only relevant pages of subpoenaed document in CA trust probate case?

July 1, 2025

A: If I were the lawyer reading a response to a subpoena where only part of a document was submitted, I might wonder why the entire document wasn’t submitted. What are they trying to hide? Also, what a non-lawyer thinks is responsive or relevant may not be what a lawyer thinks is so, and vice versa. There are different strategies from “give the least possible information” to “flood the other side with so much information that they might not find the needle in the haystack.” If it does not harm a person in any way, it is often best to give the entire document. But this decision needs to be based on the circumstances in each situation and what the subpoenaed documents say.

Q. Guidance needed for navigating trust distribution, pension continuation, and property issues in California.

June 26, 2025

A: I'm sorry for your situation. I generally tell clients that Trust Administration matters involve 10 steps and step 9 is when the assets are distributed (given) to the beneficiaries (the people named to inherit assets.) To be sure you don't get yourself into legal trouble by taking your inheritance BEFORE all of your loved one's bills and taxes are paid off, and the other steps are followed, you need to get the assistance of an attorney who handles Trust Administrations. If you cannot afford an attorney, check to see if there is a legal aid center in your area. Try asking your local county Bar Association is there are any legal aid or "pro bono" (free) legal centers near you. Best wishes. ... Read More