Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP is pleased to announce a six-attorney team, led by partners Jenny Hill Bratt and Matthew Owens, has joined the firm’s San Diego (Del Mar) office from Withersworldwide. Also joining from Withersworldwide are special counsel Allison Whitmore Hirsh and associates Mariah Lohse, Nicole M. Paschoal and Austin Prewitt.
“We are delighted to welcome Jenny, Matt and their team to Sheppard Mullin,” said Luca Salvi, chair of Sheppard Mullin. “Our Private Wealth and Fiduciary Litigation and our Estate Planning and Wealth Transfer practices are nationally and internationally recognized for their successes in the courtroom and their innovative approach to estate, tax and succession planning. Jenny and Matt’s collective knowledge and experience will help us continue to grow these practices and serve our existing clients both nationally and globally.”
Sheppard Mullin partner Adam Streisand, who leads the firm’s Private Wealth and Fiduciary Litigation team added, “We have built a global practice of renown, particularly in the field of private wealth and fiduciary litigation, and I am proud that our successes in high profile, bet-the-company cases continues to attract top talent, and especially proud that Matt, Jenny and their team are now part of Sheppard Mullin."
Bratt joins Sheppard Mullin’s Tax practice group and Estate Planning and Wealth Transfer team where she will focus on U.S. and international estate and income tax planning, trusts and estates administration, family and closely held business planning and charitable planning and exempt organizations. She advises U.S.-based individuals who own foreign assets on the manner in which such assets should be structured as well as their tax compliance obligations, routinely employing transfer tax mitigation techniques. Bratt also advises clients in planning and implementing charitable gifts and assists with the formation of private foundations and private operating foundations. Bratt is a fellow in the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel and a certified specialist in estate planning, trust and probate law by the State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization. She received her B.A, cum laude, from the University of California, San Diego, and her J.D. and LL.M. from the University of San Diego School of Law.
Owens joins Sheppard Mullin’s Business Trial practice group where he will be a part of its renowned Private Wealth and Fiduciary Litigation team. He focuses on trust, estate and inheritance disputes, having prosecuted and defended a wide range of matters in probate court including trust contests, elder abuse actions, accountings, contested conservatorships and claims involving breach of fiduciary duty. His clients include high net worth individuals and families, corporate trustees and private professional fiduciaries. He has handled numerous trials and arbitrations of trusts and estates disputes as well as appeals, including two cases that resulted in published opinions. Owens is a certified specialist in estate planning, trust and probate law by the State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization and was recognized in the Chambers High Net Worth Guide 2023 for Private Wealth Disputes – California. He received his B.A., Honors College, cum laude, from the University of Mississippi and his J.D. from Santa Clara University.
Streisand noted, “I have been watching Matt in the courtroom for many years. He is a top-flight fiduciary litigator with a stellar reputation who will complement our practice of renown.”
“Jenny is one of the most sought-after and widely respected trusts and estates and trust administration lawyers in the state. She has a thriving practice in family and closely held business planning and charitable and exempt organizations, and a wealth of experience and ingenuity that will greatly benefit our clients.”
Whitmore Hirsh is special counsel in the Tax practice group and Estate Planning and Wealth Transfer team. She works with high net worth individuals in estate planning, estate and trust administration, estate and gift taxation, business succession planning and charitable giving. She received her B.A., cum laude, from the University of New Hampshire and her J.D. from the New England School of Law. She has been recognized as a Best Lawyers “One to Watch” by U.S. News and Best Lawyers.
Lohse is an associate in the Tax practice group and Estate Planning and Wealth Transfer team and focuses her practice on a variety of private client capacities, including estate planning and family office structuring and transfers. She received her B.A. from Brown University, her M.S. from the University of Utah, and her J.D. from the University of California Los Angeles School of Law.
Paschoal is an associate in the Tax practice group and Estate Planning and Wealth Transfer team practicing in the areas of estate planning, trust and estate administration, charitable giving and tax-exempt organizations. She focuses on wealth transfers for successful families and business owners, sophisticated estate and gift tax saving techniques, charitable planned giving, business succession planning and probate and trust administrations. Paschoal received her B.A., cum laude, from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo and her J.D., cum laude, from the University of San Diego School of Law.
Prewitt is an associate in the Business Trial practice group and the Tax practice group and Estate Planning and Wealth Transfer team. Prewitt focuses his practice on trust, estate and inheritance disputes, including trust contests, contested accountings and breach-of-fiduciary-duty claims. He also assists with estate and tax planning for individuals and families, estate and trust administration and charitable planning. He helps clients understand the tax consequences of their transactions as well as various estate planning and gifting techniques to help achieve their goals. Prewitt received his B.S., with honors, from the University of California, Davis and his J.D., magna cum laude and Order of the Coif, from the University of San Diego School of Law.
About Sheppard Mullin’s Private Wealth and Fiduciary Litigation Team
Sheppard Mullin’s Private Wealth and Fiduciary Litigation team includes some of the most successful trial attorneys in the country in disputes over private wealth, most notably involving trusts, decedents’ estates and conservatorships or adult guardianships. Our Private Wealth and Fiduciary litigators represent clients in cases involving claims of breach of fiduciary duty, fiduciary misconduct and fraud, misfeasance and malfeasance in estate administration, investment mismanagement, financial elder abuse, and will and trust contests. Our team litigates cases in jurisdictions across the country, as well as cases that are multi-jurisdictional and international in scope.
About Sheppard Mullin’s Estate Planning and Wealth Transfer Team
Sheppard Mullin has a wide range of experience in all aspects of estate planning, complex trust and estate administration, and fiduciary litigation. Our attorneys provide legal counsel ranging from developing a basic estate plan involving wills and revocable trusts to designing more sophisticated plans for the transfer of family wealth to younger generations and charities. Our clients include individuals, families, nonprofit organizations and corporate fiduciaries.
About Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP
Sheppard Mullin is a full-service AmLaw 50 firm with more than 1,000 attorneys in 16 offices located in the United States, Europe and Asia. Since 1927, industry-leading companies have turned to Sheppard Mullin to handle corporate and technology matters, high-stakes litigation and complex financial transactions. In the U.S., the firm's clients include nearly half of the Fortune 100. For more information, please visit www.sheppardmullin.com.