By Corcoran Smith Law Corp. · Updated 2026-09-24

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Name: Selected Google review excerpt by Wendy Bracy
Rating: 5
Author: Wendy Bracy

Leave your name and a phone number or email, and Corcoran Smith Law will contact you for a free consultation about a California probate, trust or inheritance matter. The consultation is free for every matter. Details about the estate help but are optional; an attorney responds within one business day.

How to reach you

Your name and a phone number or an email is all we need. Everything else is optional.

Your name

Phone phone or email Please call me back Prefer Text Msg

Tick Prefer Text Msg if you would rather we text this number than call. Message and data rates may apply.

Email phone or email

Add details about your situation (optional)

The estate

Best time to call optional

A preference, not a booked appointment. Call directly if a deadline is close.

California county optional

Where the person who died lived. It sets the court and the venue.

Your role or relationship to the person who died optional

Name of the person who died optional

Date you were served the trustee’s notice optional

If you have it, this is the single most important date. Estimate your deadline first if you would rather.

Other people or organizations involved optional

The executor, trustee, heirs or others you know about. The firm checks these names for conflicts before discussing your matter in detail; if you skip this, we will ask on the call.

What help do you need? optional

A sentence or two is enough. Keep out anything you consider privileged for now.

Submitting does not create an attorney-client relationship. Do not send confidential or privileged information before the firm confirms how it may receive it. The firm checks conflicts before discussing your matter in detail. How we handle your information.

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Prefer to talk?

The consultation is free either way. If your deadline is close, a call is faster than anything else here.

We Answer 24/7 — Call Anytime · (415) 275-1492

Need help with legal fees?

We litigate select cases on contingency, with no upfront fees.

Costs are separate from the fee, and whether you are responsible for them is set out in the written agreement before you sign anything.

You pay no fee unless there is a recoveryThe firm carries the risk of the case. If nothing is recovered, no fee is owed.

The rate is negotiable, and must say soCalifornia requires the written agreement to state that the fee is not set by law.

Costs are separate, and disclosed up frontThe agreement must state how costs affect the fee before you sign it.

How contingency fees work in California

A contingency fee means the attorney is paid from what is recovered rather than by the hour, so a beneficiary who cannot fund litigation out of pocket can still bring a claim. California regulates these agreements closely. Under Business and Professions Code section 6147, the agreement must be in writing and the attorney must give the client a duplicate copy, signed by both, when the contract is made. It must state the agreed contingency rate; how disbursements and costs incurred in prosecuting or settling the claim will affect that fee; and to what extent the client could be required to pay for related matters. Unless the matter falls under section 6146, the agreement must also state that the fee is not set by law and is negotiable. These are not formalities: failure to comply with any provision of section 6147 makes the agreement voidable at the client’s option, leaving the attorney entitled only to a reasonable fee.

Sources: Business and Professions Code s.6147 - Contingency fee contracts · Verified 2026-08-03.

Not every matter suits a contingency arrangement, and the firm does not take every case on one. Whether yours qualifies depends on the facts, the likely recovery, and the assets actually available to satisfy a judgment. Ask when you call.

We Answer 24/7 — Call Anytime · (415) 275-1492

Meet the firm behind this guide

Google reviews of Corcoran Smith Law Corp.

Corcoran Smith Law Corp. publishes California Inheritance Law. These selected excerpts describe reviewers’ experiences with the firm.

5 out of 5 on Google

“Throughout the entire process, communication was clear, timely, and reassuring.”

Amanda Cichosz · Excerpt
Read the full review on Google

5 out of 5 on Google

“He has been compassionate, attentive, and consistently took the time to explain everything clearly.”

Wendy Bracy · Excerpt
Read the full review on Google

View the firm’s Google profile and all reviews →

Excerpts checked September 10, 2026. Visit Google for the current rating and all reviews. Individual experiences differ; past results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Attorney advertising.