Strategic Tax & Real Estate Counsel

Property tax disputes often arise at the intersection of valuation, statutory interpretation, and county‑level administrative procedure. These matters require a clear understanding of how assessors apply Proposition 13, how exclusions are evaluated, and how to build a persuasive evidentiary record. The firm assists clients in navigating these issues efficiently, coordinating valuation analyses, preparing comprehensive submissions, and positioning cases for resolution at the administrative or judicial level.

The firm advises individuals and entities on change‑in‑ownership analyses and other Proposition 13 matters, prepares and presents appeals before assessment appeals boards, and litigates property tax disputes in superior court when necessary. Mr. Taylor draws on his extensive background—including years of practice on behalf of Los Angeles County—to develop tailored, case‑specific strategies. The firm offers an initial consultation to evaluate the matter and discuss available approaches.

Penalty work includes requests to cancel delinquent penalties, redemption penalties, and related charges where the failure to pay was due to reasonable cause and circumstances beyond the taxpayer’s control, or where the assessment or bill itself was in error. These requests are made to the tax collector, not the assessment appeals board, and they turn on the statutory grounds for cancellation, the timing of the payment or the bill, and the record presented with the request. Mr. Taylor’s service as General Counsel to the Los Angeles County Treasurer and Tax Collector informs how those requests are framed and documented.

The emphasis is on commercial, multi-property, and institutional matters, and on disputes in which the amount at issue and the legal questions justify attorney involvement. Routine single-family assessment appeals are generally not a fit.

These cases sit at the intersection of valuation, statutory interpretation, and county procedure. They require a clear understanding of how assessors apply Proposition 13, how exclusions are evaluated, and how to build a persuasive record. Drew M. Taylor draws on nearly a decade with the Los Angeles County Counsel’s Office representing the Assessor and the Treasurer and Tax Collector, including high-stakes commercial property litigation and several published Court of Appeal decisions.

The firm advises on change-in-ownership analyses, prepares and presents appeals before assessment appeals boards, prepares penalty cancellation requests to the tax collector, and litigates in superior court when an administrative request is denied. An initial consultation is available to determine whether the matter is a fit.

Drew M. Taylor is a California real estate attorney and a licensed real estate broker. The engagement is legal representation of one party. The firm does not search for property, conduct showings, or represent both sides of a transaction.

For sellers, the work includes review of the buyer’s offer and preparation of the purchase agreement, addenda, and counter-offers; preparation and delivery of the required seller disclosures, including the Transfer Disclosure Statement, Seller Property Questionnaire, and related statutory forms; identification of title and disclosure matters to be resolved before closing; negotiation with the buyer or the buyer’s representative; management of contingency and performance deadlines; and coordination with escrow and title, including review of the closing statement against the contract.

For buyers, the work includes preparation of the offer, addenda, and counter-offers; review of the seller’s disclosures and inspection reports; negotiation with the seller or the seller’s representative; review of the preliminary title report and escrow instructions; management of contingency and performance deadlines; and coordination with escrow and title, including review of the closing statement against the contract.

Inspections, appraisal, natural-hazard reports, home-warranty premiums, and lender charges are third-party costs and are not included. Escrow is conducted by a neutral escrow holder.

The same schedule applies whether the firm represents the buyer or the seller. The fee covers one property and one escrow, through closing or a mutual cancellation. Transactions involving an entity party, property held in a probate estate or trust, seller financing, or a 1031 exchange are quoted separately after review of the facts. A transaction that terminates and is restarted on a different property is a new engagement. Disputes arising after closing, and any matter that becomes litigation, are outside the scope of this fee.

Mr. Taylor brings more than two decades of real estate litigation experience, including service as Vice President and Trial Counsel at Fidelity National Law Group. In that role he represented Fortune 500 company Fidelity National Financial, Inc. and its insureds in real estate litigation across Southern California, managed a docket of more than twenty title insurance matters through depositions, mediations, dispositive motions, and trial preparation, and tried cases involving title, escrow, and coverage issues.

The firm handles matters in state court, mediation, arbitration, and pre-litigation negotiation. An initial consultation is available to evaluate the dispute.

Work includes drafting and negotiating purchase and sale agreements, residential and commercial leases, easements and access agreements, financing and loan documents, and title and escrow instructions. Because the firm also litigates these issues, the documents are prepared with a clear view of how transactions fail: contingencies, default remedies, disclosure, title exceptions, and the allocation of risk.

Matters involving entity parties, seller financing, 1031 exchanges, or commercial terms are handled under this engagement rather than the flat-fee schedule. An initial consultation is available to discuss a pending or proposed transaction.

Work includes trust contests and fiduciary claims in which real estate is the principal asset, coordination of the title and tax consequences of transfers, and advice for trustees and beneficiaries dealing with inherited or co-owned property. Planning and restatement work is undertaken where it is tied to the ownership or transfer of real property.