Klaus T Gottlieb
Top rated Estate Planning & Probate attorney in San Luis Obispo, California
Wealth Care Lawyer
Practice areas: Estate Planning & Probate
Licensed in California since: 2021
Education: Northwestern California University School of Law - Sacramento
Languages spoken: English, German
Selected to Rising Stars: 2024 - 2026 
Virtual Appointments 
Free Consultation Wealth Care Lawyer
956 Walnut St#200
San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 Phone: 805-703-2282 Email: Klaus T Gottlieb Visit website
Details 
I founded Wealth Care Lawyer on a simple conviction: an estate plan that doesn't reflect how you actually live, what you've built, and who you want to protect isn't much of a plan.
My background spans law, business, and science — JD, MBA (Indiana University), and MS in Biotechnology (Johns Hopkins) — and I teach Wills & Trusts at Monterey College of Law. Teaching the doctrine keeps it sharp. So does publishing: my research on charitable trust planning has appeared in Tax Notes Federal and California Trusts & Estates Quarterly.
I work with one client at a time, handle every matter personally, and charge a fixed fee. No hand-offs. No hourly billing surprises. Just careful planning built around your specific situation.
Peer-recognized as a Super Lawyers Rising Star in 2024, 2025, and 2026.
First Admitted: 2021, California
Professional Webpage: https://wealthcarelawyer.com/trust-attorney-san-luis-obispo/
Bar / Professional Activity
- Founding Member of the California Central Coast Estate Planning Council, 2024
- Professor of Law teaching Wills and Trusts and Business Law at the Monterey College of Law, Seaside, CA , 2023
- Active Member of the California Lawyers Association, American Bar Association and the San Luis Obispo Bar Association. Contributor to the Bar Bulletin. , 2022
Educational Background
- Started a dual LLM (Masters in Law) program in Taxation and Estate Planning at Golden Gate University in San Francisco.Taxation LLM: GGU Law’s Taxation LLM program has been consistently ranked as The Best Tax LLM in California by TaxTalent for the past three years.It is also recognized as one of the top graduate tax programs nationally for training in taxation, estate planning, and elder care1.Estate Planning LLM: The Estate Planning LLM program at GGU is taught by the same faculty as the Tax LLM program., 2024
- Juris Doctor (JD), Northwestern California University School of Law, Sacramento, California., 2021
- Master of Business Administration (MBA), Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana., 2000
- Master of Science (MS) in Biotechnology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland., 2012
- Doctor of Medicine (MD-PhD), University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany., 1987
Scholarly Lectures / Writings
- •Overview of CRTs •Ideal Client for CRTs •Benefits of High 7520 Rate •CRATs vs. CRUTs •IRS Actuarial Tables •Optimization and Economic Benefits •Resources , Author and Presenter, Explaining Charitable Remainder Trusts - From Mystery to Mastery, California Education of the Bar (CEB), Continuing Legal Education, Financial Planning, Tax Planning, 2024
- The first comprehensive analysis of IRS Form 5227 microdata on charitable remainder trusts since the IRS's 2014 study of filing year 2012. Using seven years of publicly available microdata (2016–2022), the article examines CRT population trends, new trust formations, asset distributions, and trust longevity. Key findings: the CRT population declined approximately 10 percent — from 105,860 trusts in 2012 to 95,165 in 2022 — while new formations remained stable at roughly 2,462 per year, indicating that terminations are outpacing formations as trusts established in the 1990s mature. The article also documents significant methodological issues in the IRS data, including the inutility of the FR_1041_CD classification field, the absence of trust-type data for 2017, and pervasive quality problems in the ASSET_CD and ASSET_AMT fields that preclude reliable asset-size analysis., Author, Charitable Remainder Trusts, a Decade After the Last IRS Study, Tax Notes Federal, Estate Planning Attorneys, Philanthropy Leaders, Tax Attorneys., 2026
- Charitable Remainder Unitrusts (CRUTs) are a mainstay of charitable planning, yet the derivation of the income tax charitable deduction is often treated as a black box. Practitioners routinely rely on IRS actuarial tables without a clear account of the computational steps that produce the published remainder factors. This Article explains the mathematics underlying I.R.C. § 7520 and Treas. Reg. § 1.664-4, translating the operative provisions into explicit formulas. The result is a replicable method for independently verifying remainder factors and constructing proprietary valuation models, illustrated through a companion CRUT calculator implementing the described approach.Keywords: Charitable Remainder Unitrust (CRUT), IRC Section 7520, Valuation of Charitable Remainder, Advanced Estate Planning, Quantitative Tax Modeling, Computational Methods, Legal Technology, Author, From Myth to Math: A Tutorial on the Actuarial Valuation of Charitable Remainder Unitrusts under I.R.C. § 7520, SSRN, Estate Planning Attorneys, Tax Attorneys, Financial Planners, CPAs, 2025
- Charitable Remainder Trusts (CRTs) are especially attractive this summer for two primary reasons:Maximized Tax Deductions: The IRS 7520 rate, which influences the income tax deduction for establishing a CRT, has recently increased. This higher rate means a greater immediate tax deduction. However, this advantageous rate may not last long, so it’s a prime time to take action and establish a CRT.Capital Gains Tax Savings: The remarkable stock performance of companies like NVIDIA and Tesla has created many new millionaires. These individuals often have highly concentrated and risky stock positions. Diversifying these positions would typically incur substantial capital gains taxes. However, using a CRT allows for diversification without the immediate tax hit, providing a significant financial advantage., Author, Charitable Remainder Trusts: Get Them While They Are Hot This Summer, National Law Review, Estate Planning, Financial Planning, 2024
- Assembly Bill No. 1663 (2021-2022 Reg. Sess.) (A.B. 1663), “Protective Proceedings,” is new legislation that became effective January 1, 2023. It makes multiple important amendments to the Probate Code and the Welfare and Institutions Code. California joins an increasing number of states that have made less-restrictive alternatives to conservatorship a legislative priority. Supported decisionmaking (SDM) is one of them. The idea is that adults with a disability, which could include dementia, retain their autonomy and make their own decisions, albeit with support. SDM can be informal or memorialized in an SDM agreement. California had the benefit of not needing to start from scratch and, indeed, many of the provisions of the new law accord with those in the 2017 Uniform Guardianship, Conservatorship, and Other Protective Arrangements Act (UGCOPAA)., Sole Author, Assembly Bill 1663 “Protective Proceedings”: Less-Restrictive Alternatives to Conservatorship, Trusts & Estates Quarterly, Professional Fiduciaries, Probate Attorneys, Judges, Disability Advocates, 2023
- We examine six interconnected factors or forces that will shape estate planning1. The potential for unprecedented wealth transfer to the next generation2. The long-term care crisis looming for older Americans3. The rapid aging of the population4. Unsustainably low tax rates5. Direct Care Worker Shortages6. Low estate planning participation, Sole Author, Forces That Shape Estate Planning Over the Next 20 Years—and a Call to Action, San Luis Obispo County Bar Journal, Estate Planners, Financial Planners, 2022
Other Outstanding Achievements
- Inclusion as a Marquis Who’s Who in America biographical listee. For over a century, Marquis Who’s Who has proudly supported the library and research communities with the most trusted biographical information of its kind. Nearly every public and academic library in the United States – as well as corporate and research libraries around the world – use Marquis Biographies in print or online (MBO). This is why Marquis Who’s Who has been invaluable to the reference community for over 120 years and will be for decades to come., 2025
Honors
- Super Lawyers - Rising Star, https://profiles.superlawyers.com/california/san-luis-obispo/lawyer/klaus-t-gottlieb/a508869d-7b3e-47b8-930c-fc7aa8e1c77a.html, 2024
Office location for Klaus T Gottlieb
956 Walnut St
#200
San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
Selections
3 Years Rising Stars
- Rising Stars: 2024 - 2026