Estate Planning & Trust Administration
Protect Your Legacy with a Legally Sound, Tax-Efficient Plan
We draft and administer revocable living trusts, irrevocable trusts, Irrevocable Life Insurance Trusts (ILITs), pour-over wills, powers of attorney, and advance healthcare directives. As a dual-licensed attorney and CPA, Sean integrates tax planning directly into every estate plan — analyzing the income tax, gift tax, and estate tax implications of each structure before a single document is drafted.
We also handle complete trust funding, including the preparation of grant deeds and California Preliminary Change of Ownership Report (PCOR) filings to transfer real property into your trust while protecting your Proposition 13 base year value from reassessment.
For clients with international assets, foreign beneficiaries, or cross-border family structures, we bring the additional layer of international tax analysis that most estate planning attorneys cannot provide.
Probate, Family & Life Transitions
Clear Guidance Through Life’s Most Important Legal Moments
We represent executors, administrators, and trustees in California probate proceedings and trust administrations — handling court filings, creditor notices, asset inventories, trust accountings, and final distributions. Our attorney-CPA background is particularly valuable when estates involve business interests, investment accounts, real property, or unresolved tax obligations that must be addressed before assets can be distributed to beneficiaries. We also assist clients navigating major life transitions including prenuptial and postnuptial agreements, uncontested divorce proceedings, and the estate plan updates — trust amendments, beneficiary designations, deed transfers — that marriage, separation, or divorce typically require.
For clients going through divorce, our dual perspective on tax consequences and Proposition 13 implications provides meaningful advantages that a purely legal practitioner cannot offer. For complex contested family law matters, we work alongside or refer to trusted family law counsel.
Tax, IRS Resolution & International Compliance
Comprehensive Tax Counsel from Planning to Resolution
Tax Planning and Compliance: We provide individual and business tax preparation and planning — federal and California returns, S-corporation and partnership returns, multi-state filings, and proactive year-round strategy to minimize your tax burden legally and efficiently. We also advise on California FTB matters including estimated payments, notices, and audit responses.
IRS Tax Resolution: We represent individuals and businesses before the IRS at every stage — audits, collections, and appeals. Resolution services include offers in compromise, installment agreements, currently-not-collectible status, penalty abatement, innocent spouse relief, and CDP hearings. We also handle California FTB and EDD disputes for state-level tax matters.
International Tax Compliance: We assist U.S. persons and foreign nationals with FBAR (FinCEN 114), FATCA (Form 8938), Forms 5471, 5472, and 3520, and other international information returns. For clients with previously unreported foreign assets, we guide them through the IRS Streamlined Foreign Offshore Procedures (SFOP) and Streamlined Domestic Offshore Procedures (SDOP). We have deep experience in U.S.-China and U.S.-Taiwan tax matters including treaty applications and foreign tax credit planning.
Property Tax Appeals: We represent California property owners in assessment appeals before county Assessment Appeals Boards, challenging overassessed property values to reduce ongoing tax liability.
Chapter 7 Bankruptcy: When debt becomes overwhelming, Chapter 7 bankruptcy can provide a genuine fresh start. We analyze your assets, exemptions, and income to determine eligibility and develop the most protective filing strategy — with particular attention to how bankruptcy interacts with IRS tax obligations, since some tax debts may be dischargeable under specific conditions.
Immigration Law
Your Pathway to the United States, Clearly Navigated
We represent clients across a broad range of immigration matters including employment-based visas, investor visas (EB-5 and the new Gold Card program), family-based petitions, adjustment of status, naturalization, asylum applications, removal defense, and appeals before the Board of Immigration Appeals.
We understand the unique financial and legal considerations facing Chinese-speaking investors, entrepreneurs, and families navigating the U.S. immigration system. Our practice provides fully bilingual guidance in English and Traditional Chinese throughout the entire process, including interpretation support for USCIS interviews where needed.
For investor clients, our tax and business background allows us to analyze the full financial picture of an immigration strategy — including the U.S. tax consequences of obtaining residency, the reporting obligations that come with it, and how to structure assets most efficiently before making the transition.
Business Formation & Consulting
The Right Foundation for Your Business, Built to Last
We advise on entity selection and formation — corporations, LLCs, and partnerships — with particular attention to California-specific requirements including Franchise Tax Board obligations and LLC fee structures. For foreign-owned U.S. entities, we handle Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) beneficial ownership reporting, Form 5472 compliance, and FIRPTA considerations for real property investments.
For foreign investors and entrepreneurs entering the U.S. market, we develop a comprehensive strategy that integrates legal structure, tax efficiency, and regulatory compliance from day one. Whether you are establishing a new operation, acquiring an existing business, or expanding an overseas enterprise into the United States, we provide the kind of holistic analysis that requires both legal and accounting expertise — including tax treaty implications, transfer pricing considerations, and entity structuring decisions that shape long-term profitability.
We serve clients from China, Taiwan, and beyond who are navigating the intersection of U.S. and home-country legal and tax systems, and who need a single trusted advisor capable of seeing the full picture.
Litigation & Litigation Support
Legal Advocacy Backed by Financial Expertise
We provide direct civil litigation representation across a broad range of matters including breach of contract, business fraud and misrepresentation, shareholder and partnership disputes, breach of fiduciary duty, elder financial abuse, creditor and debtor disputes, fraudulent transfer claims, promissory note enforcement, and unfair competition claims.
Our dual credentials as both attorney and CPA allow us to build cases that integrate legal strategy with financial evidence — a significant advantage in disputes where damages, valuations, or financial wrongdoing are central to the outcome.
We also serve as expert witnesses and litigation consultants for other attorneys in cases requiring specialized financial analysis, including forensic accounting, damages quantification, lost profits analysis, and business valuation.
Whether you need lead counsel or a credentialed financial expert to support existing litigation, we bring the analytical depth and professional credibility that complex disputes demand.
For clients whose litigation intersects with tax matters — such as fraudulent transfer claims, trust fund recovery penalties, or Tax Court petitions — our tax background provides an integrated perspective that most litigation attorneys cannot offer.
