John D. Pettker
John D. (Jack) Pettker is a founding member of Rodi Pollock Pettker Christian & Pramov and currently serves the firm as Of Counsel.
For over 40 years, Jack has practiced law principally in the areas of estate planning and probate administration, succession planning for family-owned businesses, and counseling private foundations. Jack uses traditional and cutting-edge strategies to assist families in accumulating, protecting and transferring their wealth and in minimizing taxes.
Jack is a Certified Specialist in Estate Planning, Trust and Probate Law, the State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization. He has been listed for over 20 years in Naifeh and Smith's The Best Lawyers in America as one of the best lawyers in Los Angeles, California in the area of Trusts and Estates. In 2011, Jack was named one of the Top 100 Southern California Superlawyers.
Since Rodi Pollock's inception, family businesses have been a major focus of Jack's and the law firm's trust and estate planning practice. Jack is experienced in planning and completing the succession of management and ownership in family businesses. He has authored many articles relating to the legal problems of family businesses.
Jack works actively with many charitable and nonprofit organizations. He currently dedicates much of his volunteer time in working with Children's Hospital Los Angeles, an international leader in pediatric medicine, where he currently serves on its Board of Trustees and the Executive Commitee of the Board of Trustees. From 2006-2012, he served as Co-Chair of the hospital's Board of Trustees.
Areas of Practice
- Estate Planning
- Trusts & Estates Administration
- Federal Estate & Gift Taxation
- Guardianships & Conservatorships
Certified Legal Specialties
- Estate Planning, Trust and Probate Law, State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization
Bar Admissions
- California, 1968
- U.S. District Court Central District of California
Education
- Stanford Law School, Stanford, California
- LL.B. - 1967
- Stanford University, Stanford, California
- B.A. - 1964
- Honors: With Distinction
- Major: Political Science
Published Works
- A Comparison of Estate Laws in Four Countries and Their Influence on Family Companies (Co-Author), Vol. IX, No. 3, Family Business Review, Fall, 1996
- The New Anti-Freeze Law: A Meltdown For the Family Firm? (Co-Author), Vol. II, No. 2, Family Business Review, Summer, 1989
- Legal Problems of Family Businesses, (Co-Author), Family Business Research Conference, University of Southern California Graduate School of Business Administration, 1985
Honors and Awards
- Recognized for over 20 years in Naifeh and Smith's Best Lawyers in America, published by Woodward/White, Inc. as one of the best lawyers in Los Angeles, California in the area of Trusts and Estates
- 2011 Top 100 Southern California Superlawyers
Professional Associations and Memberships
- Los Angeles County Bar Association, Member, Section of Trusts and Estates
- State Bar of California, Member, Section of Taxation
- American Bar Association, Member, Section of Real Property, Probate and Trust Law
- Fletcher Jones Foundation, Corporate Secretary
- Fletcher Jones Foundation, General Counsel
- The Virginia Steele Scott Foundation, Member, Board of Directors
- Childrens Hospital, Los Angeles, Member, Board of Trustees
- Children's Hospital, Los Angeles, Member, Executive Committee of Board of Trustees
- Children's Circle of Care, leading benefactors of children's hospital in North America, Member
- Children's Hospital- Los Angeles, Member, Ethics Resource Committee
