10 Best Estate Planning Lawyers in Jacksonville, FL

best estate planning lawyers in jacksonville

Estate planning in Jacksonville covers everything from a simple will to complex Medicaid asset protection, and Florida’s specific probate and elder law rules mean local experience matters. Most estate planning and probate matters for Duval County residents move through the Circuit Court’s probate division, and many of the area’s most established attorneys hold Florida Bar Board Certification in Elder Law — a specialty credential that requires additional testing beyond a standard law license.

Below is a look at ten Jacksonville-area estate planning firms, along with what’s publicly documented about each.

1. Law Office of Douglas A. Oberdorfer, P.A.

Law Office of Douglas A. Oberdorfer, P.A.
  • Attorney: Douglas A. Oberdorfer (Founder)
  • In Practice: 20+ years
  • Headquarters: 432 East Monroe Street, 2nd Floor, Jacksonville, FL 32202
  • Phone: (904) 354-5454
  • Website: oberdorferlaw.com
  • Practice Areas: Estate Planning, Wills, Trusts, Power of Attorney, Probate & Estate Administration, Guardianship, Elder Law, Asset Protection, Medicaid Planning
  • Firm Size: Boutique

About the Firm: Douglas Oberdorfer has practiced estate planning, probate, and elder law in Northeast Florida for more than two decades, building a practice that serves clients not just in Jacksonville but across a wide swath of surrounding communities, including St. Augustine, Ponte Vedra, Amelia Island, and Orange Park. The firm emphasizes affordable rates and flexible appointment availability, and it handles the full range of estate planning documents alongside more specialized elder law matters like Medicaid planning and asset protection for long-term care. Client reviews frequently describe Oberdorfer as attentive and unhurried during a first meeting, with several noting he helped guide them through the legal side of losing a spouse or family member.

2. Berg Bryant Elder Law Group, PLLC

Berg Bryant Elder Law Group, PLLC
  • Attorneys: Rebecca L. Berg, R. Kellen Bryant (Founding Partners), Carla Trinca-Conley, Shelby Habing
  • Founded: May 2016
  • Headquarters: 7545 Centurion Parkway, Suite 108, Jacksonville, FL 32256
  • Phone: (904) 398-6100
  • Website: bbelderlaw.com
  • Practice Areas: Elder Law, Medicaid Planning, Long-Term Care Asset Protection, Wills, Trusts, Special Needs Trusts, Guardianship, Probate
  • Firm Size: Boutique, with additional offices in Orange Park and St. Augustine

About the Firm: Rebecca Berg, one of the first Board Certified elder law attorneys in the nation, and Kellen Bryant, who built his own solo elder law practice from scratch during the 2009 recession, joined forces in 2016 to found Berg Bryant Elder Law Group. Both founding partners are Florida Bar Board Certified Elder Law Attorneys, and the firm reports having helped more than 8,000 Florida families with asset protection and long-term care planning. The firm offers flat-fee services rather than hourly billing, and it focuses specifically on Medicaid planning, VA Aid and Attendance benefits, special needs trusts, and probate and guardianship administration for families across Duval, St. Johns, Clay, and Nassau counties.

3. Owenby Law, P.A.

Owenby Law, P.A.
  • Attorney: Joy N. Owenby (Owner & Managing Member)
  • Founded: 2004
  • Headquarters: 6136 Atlantic Boulevard, Jacksonville, FL 32211
  • Phone: (904) 770-3141
  • Website: owenbylaw.com
  • Practice Areas: Estate Planning, Wills, Trusts, Probate, Elder Law, Family Law, Bankruptcy, Criminal Defense
  • Firm Size: Mid-size, with additional offices in Orange Park, St. Augustine, and Fleming Island

About the Firm: Joy Owenby founded her Jacksonville firm in 2004 and has since grown it into a full-service practice recognized by The National Trial Lawyers Top 100 and Inc. 5000, with estate planning as one of several core practice areas alongside family law, probate, and criminal defense. The firm has particular experience serving military families throughout Northeast Florida, recognizing the added complexity that deployments and military benefits can bring to an estate plan. With four offices across the region, Owenby Law positions itself as a one-stop option for clients whose legal needs might span more than one practice area, such as an estate plan that intersects with a family law matter.

4. Law Office of David M. Goldman, PLLC

Law Office of David M. Goldman, PLLC
  • Attorney: David M. Goldman (Founder)
  • In Practice: Since 2007
  • Headquarters: 4115 Hendricks Avenue, Jacksonville, FL 32207
  • Phone: (904) 685-1200
  • Website: jacksonvillelawyer.pro
  • Practice Areas: Estate Planning, Elder Law, Asset Protection, Probate, Guardianship, Business Formation, NFA Gun Trusts
  • Firm Size: Boutique, with a second office in Ponte Vedra Beach

About the Firm: David Goldman brings an unusual combination of backgrounds to his practice, having built and managed several technology companies generating more than $500 million in sales before shifting his focus to estate planning, elder law, and business formation. He earned his J.D. from Florida Coastal School of Law in 2007 and is licensed in both Florida and Texas, and he’s been recognized by Super Lawyers as a Rising Star. The firm’s estate planning work often overlaps with its asset protection and business formation practice, giving it particular depth for clients who own a business or want more complex tools like NFA gun trusts alongside a standard will and trust plan.

5. Legacy Planning Law Group

Legacy Planning Law Group
  • Attorneys: Bill O’Leary (Founder), Brandon Hatch
  • Headquarters: 3430 Kori Road, Suite 4, Jacksonville, FL 32257
  • Phone: (904) 880-5554
  • Website: legacyplanninglawgroup.com
  • Practice Areas: Wills, Trusts, Powers of Attorney, Elder & Incapacity Planning, Special Needs Planning, Probate, Guardianship, Pet Planning, Business Succession
  • Firm Size: Boutique

About the Firm: Bill O’Leary founded Legacy Planning Law Group around a mission of helping clients pass on both assets and family harmony, framing the firm’s work as being as much about preventing family conflict as it is about legal documents. The firm serves Baker, Clay, Duval, Flagler, Nassau, Putnam, and St. Johns counties, and it offers a distinctive pet planning service alongside more standard estate planning tools like wills, trusts, and powers of attorney. O’Leary emphasizes making the planning process approachable and comfortable for clients who might otherwise put off estate planning out of discomfort with the subject matter, and the firm holds a strong volume of positive client reviews on its Google Business Profile.

6. Three Oaks Law

Three Oaks Law
  • Attorney: Sabrina Bateh Kuruvilla (Founder & Managing Attorney)
  • Founded: 2018
  • Headquarters: 13500 Sutton Park Drive South, Suite 601, Jacksonville, FL 32224
  • Phone: (904) 397-4444
  • Website: threeoakslaw.com
  • Practice Areas: Estate Planning, Probate, Wills & Trusts, Business Planning, Family Law
  • Firm Size: Boutique (2–5 attorneys)

About the Firm: Sabrina Bateh Kuruvilla founded Three Oaks Law in 2018 after more than a decade practicing estate and business planning, building the firm’s approach around her own personal journey through loss and grief. Before entering law, she spent years working at her family’s Jacksonville pizzeria, an experience she says shaped her client-centered, relationship-first approach to legal work. The firm has built a substantial base of client reviews on Birdeye, and it takes a holistic view of estate planning that folds in probate, business planning, and family law matters as they come up for multi-generational clients.

7. DiFranza Law, P.A.

DiFranza Law, P.A.
  • Attorney: Lisa A. DiFranza (Founder)
  • In Practice: Since 2011
  • Headquarters: 3840 Belfort Road, Suite 301, Jacksonville, FL 32216
  • Phone: (904) 372-0216
  • Website: difranzalaw.com
  • Practice Areas: Estate Planning, Guardianship, Guardian Advocacy, Elder Law, Probate, Adoption, Special Needs Trusts
  • Firm Size: Boutique

About the Firm: Lisa DiFranza founded her firm around a compassion-first approach to guardianship, elder law, and estate planning, and she chairs the Florida Bar Elder Law Section’s Estate Planning, Advance Directives & Probate Committee. She was named the 2018 Small Business Leader of the Year for the Beaches Division of the Jax Chamber and holds memberships in both the Academy of Florida Elder Law Attorneys and the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys. The firm focuses specifically on cases involving vulnerable family members, including special needs trusts and guardian advocacy for adults with disabilities, alongside more standard wills, powers of attorney, and probate matters.

8. Law Offices of Mark F. Moss, PLLC

Law Offices of Mark F. Moss, PLLC
  • Attorney: Mark F. Moss (Founder)
  • In Practice: Since 2015
  • Headquarters: 12276 San Jose Boulevard, Suite 520, Jacksonville, FL 32223
  • Phone: (904) 329-7242
  • Website: markmosslaw.com
  • Practice Areas: Estate Planning, Probate, Business Formation, Guardianship, Digital Legacy Planning, Contract Review
  • Firm Size: Boutique (2–5 attorneys)

About the Firm: Mark Moss earned his J.D. from Florida Coastal School of Law and built his boutique practice around a broad mix of estate planning, probate, and business services, including a somewhat unusual focus on digital legacy planning — addressing what happens to a client’s online accounts and digital assets after death. Fluent in Spanish, Moss serves clients throughout the state of Florida and offers complimentary initial consultations along with evening and weekend appointment availability. The firm handles both routine wills and trusts and more involved guardianship and business succession matters, giving it range for clients whose estate plan touches a family business.

9. Coleman Law Firm, PLLC

Coleman Law Firm, PLLC
  • Attorney: C. Randolph Coleman (Founder & Sole Practitioner)
  • In Practice: Since 1978
  • Headquarters: Jacksonville, FL
  • Website: thecolemanlawfirm.com
  • Practice Areas: Estate Planning, Wills, Trusts, Elder Law, Medicaid Planning, Small Business Law
  • Firm Size: Solo practice

About the Firm: C. Randolph Coleman has practiced law in Jacksonville since 1978, making him one of the most senior estate planning attorneys in the area, with decades of experience navigating changes to Florida’s probate and elder law statutes over that time. Coleman has published written works on estate planning and regularly lectures and holds seminars on the topic for community groups throughout the Jacksonville area. As a solo practitioner with close to five decades of experience, Coleman’s practice combines standard wills and trusts work with Medicaid planning and a small business law practice for clients who need both personal and business planning addressed together.

10. The Edwards Law Firm

The Edwards Law Firm
  • Attorney: Tom Edwards (Founder)
  • Headquarters: Jacksonville, FL
  • Phone: (904) 672-7600
  • Website: edwardslawfirm.com
  • Practice Areas: Wills, Trusts, Estate Planning for All Generations, Probate
  • Firm Size: Boutique

About the Firm: Tom Edwards leads his Jacksonville firm as a member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, a national organization he says he takes seriously as part of his ongoing commitment to the local community and to staying current on estate planning strategy. The firm markets itself around serving “estate planning for all generations,” suggesting a practice that works with clients across a range of ages and life stages rather than focusing narrowly on retirees. Edwards and his staff offer a free consultation for prospective clients working through wills, trusts, and other estate planning documents for the first time.

Jacksonville, FL Estate Planning Resources

About This List

The attorneys listed here represent a selection of estate planning practices serving Jacksonville, Florida. Details including office locations, phone numbers, and background information are based on publicly available data verified at the time of publication, including each firm’s own website and legal directory listings. Inclusion on this list does not constitute an endorsement or ranking of legal quality. If you’re planning your estate, verify current licensing and any Board Certification status through The Florida Bar and schedule consultations with more than one firm before deciding who to hire. This article is for general informational purposes and is not legal advice.

FAQs

How much does estate planning cost in Jacksonville, FL?

Costs vary depending on whether you need a simple will or a more complex trust-based plan with asset protection features. Many Jacksonville firms, including several on this list, offer flat-fee estate planning packages rather than hourly billing, so it’s worth asking about pricing structure upfront.

What does it mean if a Florida attorney is “Board Certified” in Elder Law?

Board Certification in Elder Law is a credential granted by The Florida Bar to attorneys who complete additional training and pass a specialty exam, representing a higher level of demonstrated expertise than a standard law license. Several firms on this list have attorneys who hold this certification.

Do I need a will if I already have a trust?

Yes — most estate plans built around a trust still include a “pourover will,” which catches any assets not already transferred into the trust and directs them there after death. An attorney can explain how a will and trust work together in a complete Florida estate plan.

Where is probate handled for Jacksonville residents?

Most Duval County probate matters are filed and heard through the probate division of the Fourth Judicial Circuit Court, based at the Duval County Courthouse in downtown Jacksonville.

When should I update my estate plan?

Common triggers for updating an estate plan include marriage, divorce, the birth of a child or grandchild, a significant change in assets, or a move to a new state, since estate planning laws vary by state. Many attorneys also recommend a periodic review every three to five years even without a major life change.

Disclaimer: This guide is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice or an attorney referral. It is not a ranked or sponsored list, and inclusion does not imply an endorsement by, or affiliation with, any named firm beyond what is stated. Attorney credentials, case results, and contact details change over time; confirm current information directly with each firm before making a hiring decision. Past results described here do not guarantee similar outcomes in any other case.

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