Heaton Smith Group

John serves as a Senior Consulting Associate with a concentration on the Pacific Coast. His practice focuses on high net worth tax and estate planning, family philanthropy and charitable planning, and he excels at providing sophisticated financial solutions and advanced charitable techniques that help individuals reduce taxes, provide a lasting legacy and strengthen the family’s core identity.

Credits:

• Chair of the Charitable Planning & Philanthropy Practice Group for Ainer & Fraker, LLP
• Served the needs of affluent families in Saratoga and Los Gatos, California (ranked the number sixth and eighth most affluent areas in the State of California by Western Wealth Management Business Magazine)
• Chief Counsel, numerous nonprofit organizations
• Former wealth management consultant and fee-only financial planner to high-net worth families in the affluent Brentwood/Santa Monica area of Los Angeles
• Co-founder, along with Leon Ainer, of “Family Harmony Estate Planning,” a system for designing estate plans to help families achieve lasting cohesiveness while mitigating potential inter-family conflicts

John received a B.A in History and a B.A. in Political Science from the University of California at Berkeley, his law degree (JD) from the University of Southern California Gould School of Law, and his Masters in Taxation (L.L.M.) from Golden Gate University School of Law. He has been a licensed member of the State Bar of California since 1999. John and his wife live in Saratoga, California and are active in their community.