Your Go-To Attorney for the Law of Estate Planning, Trusts, Wills,
Powers of Attorney, Probate, and
Real Estate
James Griffin received a “Superb” 10/10 rating from AVVO as a top attorney in his field.
Experienced and Trusted
James Griffin grew up in Birmingham and now lives in Cullman. He has been married to Theresa for more than thirty years. They have an adult daughter. He serves as guardian for his disabled brother and has handled the probate issues and property of his late parents. He has represented hundreds of clients for estate planning and administration and drafted thousands of documents such as wills, trusts, durable powers of attorney, “living wills,” medical directives, healthcare proxies, petitions, and consents. He has handled complex estates involving wrongful death litigation, out-of-state heirs, missing heirs, and real property in more than one state. He has opened estates in probate courts from Madison to Montgomery and from Lake Tuscaloosa to Lake Wedowee. Most importantly, he takes the time to listen to the client to make sure he is doing the right thing.
Education & Admissions
B.A., Gordon College, 1984
M.A., University of Alabama, 1990
J.D., Vanderbilt University, 2001
Admitted to the State Bar of Georgia, 2001; Alabama State Bar, 2011
Main Areas of Practice
Estate Planning
Estate planning is a creative process of evaluating assets to determine the best way to pass on your heirlooms and wealth efficiently and precisely to the person(s) you want to have them. These assets could be as simple as a collection of dolls or as complex as an interest in a large partnership. Once you die, you cannot plan any longer, so it is best to take the time now to think through everything you own and plan specifically how each asset would reach the heir you select without fuss or expense. The estate plan itself has several parts… CLICK HERE FOR MORE
Trusts
Trusts are a legal vehicle by which you transfer assets and wealth to chosen people when certain conditions are met, e.g., you die, or your youngest child reaches the age of 25. Since the Covid catastrophe, many clients prefer to transfer all their assets to their heirs without having to probate a will through the courts. There are two types of trusts… CLICK HERE FOR MORE
Real Estate & Property Law
Many clients need real estate services: sales of properties, transfers of properties to trusts, and estate planning related to condos, vacation homes, commercial property, timber lands, and rental properties. We want to help you transfer such properties to the heirs, and do it with the least expense and hassle… CLICK HERE FOR MORE
Probating of Wills
Probating wills is a crucial legal process that must be carried out delicately out of respect for the decedent’s intentions as well as the requirements of the law. A will is not enforceable until it has been proven genuine, or “probated,” through your county’s probate court within five years of the death of the deceased… CLICK HERE FOR MORE
Administration of Estates Without Wills
More than half of all Americans die without wills, including Abraham Lincoln, Pablo Picasso, and Martin Luther King. Fortunately, there is a process called “intestate administration” by which you could settle the financial affairs of your loved one who dies without a will. It is more complicated than the other procedure, but we have opened scores of intestate estates, often for heirs who live outside of Alabama… CLICK HERE FOR MORE
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