The RegistryCounty Record · California

Real Estate Attorneys in Napa County, California

Counsel for property — purchases, disputes, title, and land use. In Napa County, that work runs through the Superior Court of California, County of Napa. This directory presents real estate records from official State Bar of California data in neutral order.

A North Bay county whose economy centers on the Napa Valley wine industry and its hospitality sector; the superior court sits in the city of Napa, and wildfire-related insurance and property matters have recurred on its docket. The court of record is the Superior Court of California, County of Napa — counsel who appear there regularly read the local calendar better than any brochure.

Before comparing counsel, note the clock. Under Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 338(b), the governing period is three years for trespass or injury to real property; four years on written contracts (§ 337). Adverse possession and prescriptive easement claims require five years of qualifying use (Cal. Code Civ. Proc. §§ 321–325). Seller non-disclosure claims sound in fraud — three years from discovery (§ 338(d)).

This page is the Napa County chapter of the registry's statewide record — Real Estate Lawyers in California collects all 58 counties.

The clock & the court

Statute of limitations

Three years for trespass or injury to real property; four years on written contracts (§ 337).

Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 338(b)

Adverse possession and prescriptive easement claims require five years of qualifying use (Cal. Code Civ. Proc. §§ 321–325). Seller non-disclosure claims sound in fraud — three years from discovery (§ 338(d)).

Court of record

Superior Court of California, County of Napa.

County seat: Napa

Official court information, locations, and filing rules: www.napa.courts.ca.gov

Real Estate · Napa County roster

71 attorneys on the official State Bar of California roll list real estate among their practice areas with an address of record in Napa County.

67 of them hold an active licence; the remainder are recorded as inactive and are not currently eligible to practise.

The roster concentrates in Napa (55), Saint Helena (10), Calistoga (5) and St. Helena (1).

2 hold a State Bar Certified Legal Specialist designation — a certification issued by the State Bar's Board of Legal Specialization, and not a rating or a ranking.

Admission years on this roster run from 1967 to 2024.

The employers most represented here are Dickenson Peatman & Fogarty (7), Dickenson, Peatman & Fogarty (3) and Berryman & Montalbano (2).

Thomas S. Adams

Real Estate · Napa

Bar #200298 · Admitted 1998

Official record

David Balter

Bankruptcy · Napa

Bar #212027 · Admitted 2000

Official record

Kelly J. Berryman

Business Litigation · Calistoga

Bar #148617 · Admitted 1990

Official record

Elizabeth A. Blair

Business Litigation · Napa

Bar #238253 · Admitted 2005

Official record

Thomas F. Carey

Real Estate · Napa

Bar #177946 · Admitted 1995

Official record

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Real Estate questions, cited

What must a home seller disclose in California?

Sellers of residential property (1–4 units) must deliver a Transfer Disclosure Statement describing known material facts and defects (Cal. Civ. Code § 1102 et seq.), plus a Natural Hazard Disclosure Statement (Civ. Code § 1103) covering flood, fire, and seismic zones. Deliberately concealing known material defects supports fraud claims running three years from discovery (Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 338(d)).

How does adverse possession work in California?

A claimant must show five years of actual, open, hostile, and continuous possession under claim of right or color of title, and payment of all property taxes on the parcel during those five years (Cal. Code Civ. Proc. §§ 321–325). The tax-payment requirement defeats most casual encroachment claims; boundary disputes more often proceed as prescriptive easement or agreed-boundary theories.

Can I force the sale of a jointly owned property in California?

Generally yes, through a partition action — a co-owner is ordinarily entitled to partition as of right (Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 872.710). For inherited homes, the Partition of Real Property Act (Code Civ. Proc. § 874.311 et seq.) adds appraisal and buyout rights that let family co-owners purchase the interest of the co-owner seeking sale before a forced sale occurs.

What is a quiet title action?

A lawsuit under Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 760.010 et seq. asking the superior court to determine all adverse claims to a property and settle title in the rightful owner. It is the standard vehicle for clearing clouded title — stale deeds of trust, forged conveyances, easement disputes, or competing inheritance claims — and judgment binds all parties named and served.

Is a handshake deal for land enforceable in California?

Usually not. The statute of frauds requires contracts for the sale of real property, or leases longer than one year, to be in writing and signed (Cal. Civ. Code § 1624(a)(3)). Narrow exceptions exist for part performance and estoppel, but they are litigated uphill — real property deals belong on paper.

Legal information, not legal advice.

From the answer files

Related counsel in Napa County

Real Estate in nearby counties

Source: Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 338(b) · State Bar of California licensee records · Checked: · Maintained by the California Attorney Registry from official State Bar of California records. Legal information, not legal advice.

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