- State Bar of California, 2015
2600 Michelson Drive, Suite 950
Irvine, CA 92612
Throughout Orange County, John Wong’s ability to help clients develop a comprehensive trust and estate plan has gained recognition and popularity for his straight-forward yet tax effective approach.
Originally drawn to tax law, John worked at a major bank in the trusts and estates department when starting his legal career almost 20 years ago. He then transitioned to doing trusts and estates work for large law firms. After spending time at firms, he took the bold move to create his own firm. He founded Modern Wealth Law, APLC in 2013 with a desire to create a firm that has a culture that provides a better experience for its attorneys, staff and clients. After more than a decade, John and the firm have helped thousands of clients secure their estates and ensure that future generations are protected.
In order to do that John had to hire great people. “We hire great people and trust them to do great work, I don’t want to micromanage people,” John said.
Working primarily with people whose wealth ranges from $5 million to $30 million, John provides value to his clients by helping them protect their assets and maximizing the transfer of wealth to the next generation.
John’s firm only has two areas of practice: estate planning and trust and probate administration. John and the firm focus on estate planning, giving his clients a specific area of expertise that suits their needs. In the estate planning practice, he helps create trusts and wills, powers of attorney, advanced healthcare directives, and also assists with estate and property tax planning. This includes avoiding property tax reassessment in wealth transfers, and navigating estate taxes for larger estates.
Within estate planning, John also handles asset protection planning, which involves structuring assets to limit liability in the case of a lawsuit or a divorce.
“We also help clients administer trusts and probates if that’s required when someone passes or becomes incapacitated,” he added.
One of the reasons so many clients have turned to John Wong and Modern Wealth Law for their estate planning needs is his keen ability to foresee potential pitfalls in the future administration of the family’s estate.
“Most people know to avoid probate, what people don’t realize is what the taxes are going to be if they don’t do the proper planning,” John said.
He added that wealthier clients don’t always realize how significant the tax burden will be if their estates aren’t structured correctly.
“What clients rarely think about is the property tax reassessment on all California real estate when it passes from one generation to the next,” he added. “We believe in giving them as much information and guidance as possible regarding their estate and the likely tax outcomes. Often they realize there are a number of issues they weren’t thinking about.”
Modern Wealth Law has grown significantly over the years, in large part because other law firms and attorneys are referring clients to them. Because of their expertise, many attorneys go to John and Modern Wealth Law for their own estates. Other financial professionals, including CPAs and financial advisors, understand the need for estate planners and share clients with the firm as well. The firm keeps their clients and other professionals educated on current estate planning topics, with the goal of being the singular source for all things estate planning.
One of the reasons John loves this area of law is because he and the firm are in a unique position to help people before a problem arises. “What’s different from what we do compared to almost every other area of law is we are helping people avoid issues before they happen. We aren’t reacting to problems, such as other areas of law where people are injured, accused of a crime, or sued. We get to help people before there is a problem.”
Joe Marchelewski is the owner of AIJ Communications, a legal PR company located in Los Angeles, California. Joe is a Past President of PRSA-LA of and is a veteran of the legal PR and marketing world, having worked for some of the largest and most prestigious law firms in the world. Joe provides the interviews and Lawyer Spotlight features for OrangeCountyLawyers.com.