Stephanie D. Winstead, Esq. earned her Juris Doctorate degree from the Chapman University School of Law in Orange, California, where she was the recipient of an academic scholarship and graduated with an emphasis in tax law. While attending law school Ms. Winstead was elected to Vice President of the Tax Law Society, was enrolled in the law school’s Tax Emphasis Program and participated in Chapman’s federally funded Tax Clinic where she assisted individuals in resolving their tax disputes with the IRS. During tax season she also volunteered her time preparing income tax returns for individuals through the IRS’ Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program (VITA).

Having enjoyed working for several prestigious Orange County litigation firms, Ms. Winstead eventually made the move to a San Diego specialty tax and estate planning firm where she honed her estate planning skills and built upon her tax knowledge.

She has prepared hundreds of estate plans and developed a broad understanding of the complex issues that arise when putting these plans into practice. Ms. Winstead has implemented many wealth preservation strategies enabling clients to transfer ownership of their assets to their heirs through strategically structured estate planning devices thereby significantly minimizing taxes and probate expenses. Additionally, as comprehensive wealth preservation frequently involves the transfer of business interests, Ms. Winstead incorporates partnerships, corporations, structured gifting and charitable trusts into estate plans where appropriate to satisfy each client’s unique goals.

In 2008 Ms. Winstead received the honor of being named Young Attorney of the Year by the San Diego Daily Transcript. Ms. Winstead is licensed to practice law in all California Courts and the United States Federal Court for the Central District of California. She stays current on the latest tax and estate planning developments as a member of both the Taxation and Estate Planning sections of the California Bar Association, the American Bar Association, and the Orange County Bar Association.

When not working, Ms. Winstead enjoys sailing with her family.  She and her husband are very competitive sailors and race sailboats throughout Southern California.