Palo Alto and San Jose, Calif., August 16, 2021 – Hopkins & Carley, a preeminent Silicon Valley law firm, announced the continued expansion of its Family Wealth & Tax Planning (FWTP) group, already one of the largest in Northern California, with the addition of a senior Of Counsel and two Associates. In addition, they further fortified their Intellectual Property (IP) group with the addition of a former in-house counsel.
Barbara Murphy, a highly regarded tax attorney specializing in exempt organizations and trusts and estates, joined the firm as Of Counsel. Murphy advises individuals and families on comprehensive tax planning – income, gift and estate – with a special emphasis on philanthropic planning. She has extensive experience representing charitable organizations, including private foundations and public charities, with endowments ranging from several million to a billion dollars.
“For many years, high-net-worth individuals in Silicon Valley and throughout the Bay Area have relied on Hopkins & Carley for a broad range of high-end family estate and tax planning services,” said Jim Hager, Chair of the firm’s FWTP group. “I’m confident that Barbara’s deep expertise, particularly in meeting the sophisticated needs of high-net-worth families, will be of great benefit to our clients and to her new colleagues.”
The arrival of associates Angel Riley and Sara Hire further bolsters the strength of the FWTP group. Angel has more than seven years of experience in trust and estate matters. Sara, an eighth-year estate planner, handles matters resulting from difficult family dynamics, and her expertise includes unraveling complex financial, real estate and tax issues.
Ernest Malaspina, Managing Shareholder of Hopkins & Carley said, “I’m delighted to welcome these three talented attorneys to our firm. It’s exciting to see the continued expansion of our estate planning services as we grow to meet clients’ needs.”
Hopkins & Carley has also welcomed four other attorneys in recent weeks: Of Counsel Lynn Humphreys and associates Pavin Kang, Bill Liu and Chance Tseng. Humphreys will be part of the firm’s IP group, with a primary focus on trademark and copyright matters. Prior to joining the firm, she was Senior Corporate Counsel for Intellectual Property at Tailored Brands, Inc., the parent company of the Men’s Wearhouse, JoS. A. Bank and K&G retail stores, and was Of Counsel at Morrison & Foerster LLP in San Francisco.
Kang’s practice is centered around business and technology transactions, IP and data security and privacy compliance, with a primary focus on California Consumer Privacy Act and General Data Protection Regulation; Liu is a third-year real estate attorney who represents tenants and landlords with office, retail and other commercial leases throughout California; and Tseng is a business litigator with an emphasis on IP issues.
More information about Hopkins & Carley’s newest attorneys:
Barbara Murphy (Palo Alto, Family Wealth & Tax Planning): Barbara has extensive experience representing charitable organizations, including private foundations and public charities, with endowments ranging from several million to a billion dollars. In her trust and estate practice, she counsels clients on estate planning, estate and gift taxation, income tax planning and income taxation, charitable gift planning, trust and estate administration, and compliance review of individual, trust, gift and estate tax returns. Barbara has successfully represented many individuals and families in audits before the IRS and the FTB, as well as numerous state taxing authorities across the country. Prior to joining Hopkins & Carley, Barbara was a partner and Chair of the Exempt Organizations practice with Farella Braun + Martel.
Lynn Humphreys (San Jose, Intellectual Property): Lynn has significant experience in trademark and copyright counseling, international trademark portfolio management, brand protection, technology transactions, and advertising and marketing review. Lynn is also an Adjunct Professor at the Golden Gate School of Law, where she has taught U.S. Copyright Law and IP Practicum for Copyright and Trademark.
Angel Riley (Palo Alto, Family Wealth & Tax Planning): Angel’s primary focus is on estate planning, trust administration and probate, and she also has experience in business and real estate transactions. As a native Mandarin Chinese speaker, she is available to serve individuals and businesses in the Chinese community. Angel is also an Adjunct Business Law Professor for the San Mateo County Community College District.
Sara Hire (San Jose, Family Wealth & Tax Planning): Sara’s practice is focused on estate planning with a special emphasis in public benefits. She joins the firm from Bryant Elder Law in San Jose.
Pavin Kang (San Jose, Corporate): Pavin’s corporate practice is focused on commercial licensing and data privacy compliance and security. He joins the firm from Fennemore Dowling Aaron in Fresno.
Bill Liu (San Jose, Real Estate): Bill’s real estate experience includes drafting and negotiating non-disclosure agreements, letters of intent, lease amendments, subcontractor agreements, exclusive listing agreements, site licensing agreements, option contracts and easement agreements. He joins the firm from Oceanside Center in San Francisco, where he served as Legal Counsel.
Chance Tseng (San Jose, Intellectual Property): Chance’s practice is focused on complex intellectual property matters. Chance joins the firm from Bowman and Brooke LLP in San Jose.