Kathy Spencer Zelazny
Of Counsel
Kathy grew up in San Francisco, California, spending much of her time in Northern California, as well as with her extended family in East Texas. She graduated from Duke University in 1989 with a Bachelor of Arts. After receiving her undergraduate degree, she worked as a paralegal in the litigation department of a large law firm in Washington, DC. In 1993, she earned her Juris Doctor from Duke University School of Law. After graduation, she attended New York University and was awarded a Graduate Law Degree in Taxation (LL.M.) in 1994. From New York, Kathy headed west to Jackson, Wyoming where she started working at Mullikin, Larson & Swift LLC in the summer of 1994. While in Jackson, she met and married her husband Greg Zelazny of Cleveland, Ohio, a graduate of St. Lawrence University and a licensed land surveyor.
In 2001, Kathy and her family moved back to Northern California and settled in the Napa Valley to be closer to family. Kathy’s family is in the wine business, selling grapes grown on the family vineyards to various wineries and, until 2008, making wine under their own label known as Temple Family Vineyards. Kathy has been practicing law in the Napa Valley for the past 15 years. She joined the St. Helena office of Gagen, McCoy, McMahon, Koss, Markowitz & Raines in 2002 and was a shareholder there until 2009 when she joined Block, DeVincenzi & Zelazny LLP as a partner. In 2014, she established her solo practice in St. Helena, California under the name of The Law Offices of Kathy Zelazny.
In 2015, Kathy renewed her relationship with Mullikin, Larson & Swift in Jackson when she became “of counsel” to the firm. Kathy was thrilled to practice law again with her Mullikin, Larson & Swift partners and to have the opportunity to travel back to Jackson regularly. She looks forward to continuing to practice in Jackson as “of counsel” with Geittmann Larson Swift LLP. Kathy specializes in estate and gift tax planning, probate, taxation, and real estate and business transactions. Her practice focuses on tax and estate planning advice, drafting wills, revocable and irrevocable trusts, powers of attorney and advance health care directives. She has advised high net worth individuals, including several family winery and vineyard owners in the Napa Valley and longtime Jackson families, in a broad range of succession planning strategies. She has negotiated and prepared real estate contracts, as well as limited liability company, corporate and partnership agreements.
Kathy likes to spend her leisure time with her husband and teenage sons traveling, hiking, skiing, fly fishing and attending school and sporting events. She also enjoys running and reading.