Mompreneur and Attorney Thea Beatie Eliot: Helping Families Protect What They Love

Marin attorney and mompreneur Thea Beatie Eliot has been practicing law since 1995, and is familiar to many in the area who have used her services or attended one of her workshops. Thea's speciality is estate planning for families, keeping the needs of parents with minor children in the household in mind. We asked Thea a few questions about herself and her services and what makes living in Marin special for her. For more information about Thea Beatie Eliot and her practice, go to www.thealaw.com.

Please tell us about you and your background.

I’ve been an estate planning attorney since 1995.  I went into estate planning to meet two needs:  On the one hand, I have a strong nerdy side and the substantive law of estate planning comes from medieval English times so it’s very appealing if you like history.   And it goes without saying that tax law, which is a large part of estate planning, is a nerd’s dream.  On the other hand, I have a very strong social side and I wanted my life’s work to help people by counseling families to avoid problems, as opposed to creating or exacerbating them, which is the typical lawyer stereotype.

Before starting my own practice in 2006, I was an attorney in a boutique estate planning law firm in downtown San Francisco, a partner in and president of a San Francisco wealth management firm started by what is now the largest regional accounting firm in the Bay Area, and a name partner in a traditional law firm in the East Bay.  I’m a Bay Area native, having grown up in Petaluma (the only girl of 7 children) and went to Ursuline High School in Santa Rosa.  I went to Reed College in Portland, Oregon, where I was a Comparative Literature major and got my law degree from Seattle University and my masters in tax law (LLM) at Golden Gate University Law School.  On a personal note, I’ve been married since 2000 to Barrett, who is an amazing husband and dad, and I have two little girls, born in 2005 and 2008.  I am passionately in love with my kids and being a mom is absolutely the most important part of my identity. 

How did you get started in estate planning and services for families?

It’s a cliché, but after my first child was born in 2005, my life totally turned upside down.  Some of the changes I expected; others I didn’t.  One thing I wasn’t expecting, which is kind of naïve now that I think about it, was how much my heart would expand.  I had always loved kids, but gazing into my first-born’s eyes, touching her so-soft skin, hearing her funny little noises was like an epiphany for me.  I would die for this little creature, I thought. 

I joined my local Mother’s Club and was a permanent fixture at the weekly breast-feeding support group at Marin General (“Milk Class,” my friend Sondra called it).  In the midst of all these babies, I realized that I was absolutely baby-crazy.  I loved them, I loved them all. This realization was like a lightning rod in my life.  I had always enjoyed being an estate planning attorney but now I knew that my life’s work would be to help families protect their young children.

Most estate planning practices are designed for older people preparing for death and that model often doesn’t work for young families preparing for what we hope are long, dynamic lives.  Avoiding unnecessary administrative proceedings, taxes and expenses are all very important goals, but pale in comparison in my opinion to making sure that young children are harmed as little as humanly possible if something were to happen to their parents.

So with a 6 month old baby and a very supportive husband, I started my own practice here in Marin where I live with a vision of creating a deeply caring practice for families with young children.  What my children bring to my practice is the awareness that estate planning is not something we do for ourselves; rather, it is a gift for the people we love the most.  It is so much easier for us to take care of it today than for them to have to deal with it after we’re gone.

What is the most rewarding thing about the work you do?

I dislike the term “peace of mind” because it sounds like an advertisement for a funeral parlor, but that’s essentially it.  Parents have so many worries, not the least of which is what would happen to our kids if something happened to us.  I love being able to take this worry away.  I love knowing that I’ve helped families protect themselves and their kids no matter what.  I also especially love how we’re able to capture parents’ wishes and feelings for their children through the recorded interview we call a Priceless Conversation.  Each time I facilitate a Priceless Conversation, I’m reminded that our love for our families is truly the most essential thing in our lives.

What are some of the upcoming events you have planned for parents?

As a busy mom, I know that something has to be really easy in order for me to fit it in.  We offer Kids Protection Planning Workshops every couple of months or so, usually at the Little Gym in Sausalito, where parents can relax and learn how easy it can be to take care of this stuff while their kids have fun playing in the Gym with licensed caregivers.  Our next KPP workshops will start up again in September.  We’re also developing a workshop for the summer that I’ll be co-hosting with a wonderful financial planner, Kristin Harad of Vita Vie Financial Planning, that will help busy parents get their entire financial house in order.  In honor of Mother’s Day, we’re also offering a special promotion – for qualified new clients we’re waiving the regular $750 fee for a Family Wealth Planning Session and giving the first 5 people to reserve an appointment in May a gift certificate for a Mani-Pedi.  We have 3 gift certificates left.

What kind of fun local activities do you like to do with your children?

So many things! We love to hang out at the park, especially Gerstle Park and Boyd Park, which are within walking distance from our house.  We’re huge fans of Melissa Ayotte’s Kindermusik programs in Novato and started both girls there very young.  My older daughter just started ballet lessons at Dance Theatre 7 in Fairfax, which is totally adorable.  And we love to hang out, listen to music, dance and eat good food at the Farmers’ Markets on 4th Street on Thursday nights and at the Civic Center on Sundays.  We also make a weekly pilgrimage to Sol Food in San Rafael.
 
What do you love most about living in Marin?

Tough question because there is so much!  First would have to be the people; I couldn’t get by without my family and friends, and the moms’ community here is such a blessing.  A close second is the combination of breathtaking natural beauty (for example, Mountain Tam, as my daughter calls it) and great weather.