Amy L. Hespenheide joined Johnston, Kinney & Zulaica LLP in 2012. Amy’s practice focuses on estate planning for high net worth clients, clients with complex family structures and/or complex assets, international and cross-jurisdictional planning and irrevocable trust and tax planning. She also handles trust administration and probate matters and advises clients on charitable giving. Amy’s work for the firm includes drafting sophisticated trust instruments and other documents necessary to implement client’ estate plans. In addition, she has particular expertise in designing, drafting, and administering irrevocable inter vivos trusts, including charitable split-interest trusts, life insurance trusts, and intentionally defective grantor trusts.

Amy earned her B.A. in Political Science magna cum laude from Wellesley College, where she was also named Phi Beta Kappa. She earned her J.D. from the University of California at Berkeley (Boalt Hall School of Law). in 2010, she was awarded an LL.M. in Taxation with honors from Golden Gate University.

Before joining Johnston, Kinney & Zulaica LLP, Amy had an estate planning and trust administration practice with a boutique tax law firm in Palo Alto. During the first ten years of her legal career, she practiced as a civil litigator, gaining extensive experience in actions alleging breach of fiduciary duty and breach of contract. Between 1998 and 2000, she worked as an elbow clerk to the Honorable Edward C. Reed, Jr,. Senior United States District Judge for the District of Nevada.

Amy is a member of the Trusts and Estates Section of the State Bar of California and the Estate Planning, Probate and Trust Section of the Bar Association of San Francisco. She is admitted to practice before all federal and state courts within California as well as the United States Tax Court.