A compassionate and client-focused boutique estate planning firm.
Meet Kira Hettinger
Kira is an award-winning former federal litigator, who practiced in federal district and appellate courts across the country. After eight years of fighting to protect employees’ and retirees’ employment and healthcare benefits, she opened her own estate planning firm.
Kira graduated magnum cum laude from American University, Washington College of Law. After graduation, she was the pro se law clerk for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia and then joined a class-action law firm based in Washington DC. After a few years of firm life, she joined the United States Department of Labor’s Solicitor’s Office. She now works with clients in Maryland, DC, Virginia, and California to identify and memorialize their estate wishes. She is an active member of the California, Maryland, DC, and Virginia bars. Kira is currently earning her LLM in Taxation through the University of Florida (#2 Tax Law Program in US). She, her husband, and their three young boys live in Aptos, California.
Practice Areas
Grieving a loved one is hard – the logistics of probate should not be.
Kira’s dedicated and personalized approach to creating her clients’ estate plans and administration seeks to maximize the estate while easing the grieving process by removing unnecessary hurdles. She works with her clients to ensure their loved ones are well-cared for and their estate distributed according to their wishes. Kira takes a tailored approach, working with each of her clients one-on-one, talking and listening to what their hopes and desires are for their legacies. She carefully drafts estate plans to ensure her clients’ wishes are properly memorialized and realized. Below is more information on some specific practice areas:
Wills
When you or a loved one passes away, the law will direct how your assets are distributed. These default rules, called the laws of intestacy, will determine who inherits from you. By executing a will, you decide who inherits from you and how much they inherit. In essence, you rewrite the rules. Whether it is a simple or complex will, we will work together to ensure your wishes are memorialized and estate distributed as you choose.
Trusts
While a will disposes of your estate upon your death, a trust can act as a mechanism to distribute funds while you are living or upon your death. Trusts come in many forms (intervivos, revocable, charitable, or disability – to name just a few) and give you more control over how funds are used and who has access to the funds.
Gifts
At times you may want to gift money or property to a loved one. Depending on the value of the gift, it may be subject to a gift tax. I work with my clients to determine their goals for making the gift and then minimize or eliminate any tax obligations.
Advanced Directives
Planning for end-of-life care can be hard. But documenting your preferences for how you want your final days handled, empowers you to live out your life as you choose.
Power of Attorney
We all get by with a little help from our friends – or family. By putting together a power of attorney you give someone else legal authorization to take certain actions on your behalf. This grant of authority can be broad or narrow and should be carefully crafted to ensure you are only authorizing this individual to have the authority you want to convey.
Estate and Trust Administration
After a family member passes, Kira partners with family and friends to expeditiously and efficiently administer trusts and estates. Kira works to simplify the process and handles both court and certain IRS filings so the family can count on what matters most - grieving the loss of a loved one. She also advises clients on the ins and outs of probate/trust administration and guides each client through the details unique to their situation.