KING CITY — Monterey law firm Fenton & Keller has opened a new law office in King City, led by attorney John E. Kesecker, following a soft opening on May 1, with plans for an official opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony next month.
King City Chamber of Commerce and Salinas Valley Chamber of Commerce will hold a joint ribbon-cutting ceremony on Monday, June 12, from 4 to 6 p.m.
Guests can sip, savor and mingle, tour the office and meet the King City team at the new office, located at 218 Bassett St., Suite A — right next to the King City Post Office. It has a reception area, four offices, a kitchen area and a conference room.
Initially, the King City office will be staffed by Kesecker, Stefanie King and Lesly Valdez, as well as Kesecker’s wife Kerry, who will help in establishing the new office. Kesecker intends to be in King City three to four days per week, with King and Valdez working there full time. The office will be fully networked with the Monterey office, from a technology standpoint.
Kesecker and his wife made their home in South Monterey County and he practiced in King City for 10 years before joining Fenton & Keller — ironically, at the 218 Bassett St., Suite A, location.
“We have a lot of clients from South County, and we believe that this will give us a good physical presence in the Salinas Valley,” Kesecker said. “King City has historically supported two to four lawyers at any given time. Since closing my law office in King City, however, only one attorney remained with any kind of physical presence — Peter Anderson. Unfortunately, Peter passed away late last year, leaving a void in the community down there — both legal and otherwise — that Fenton & Keller intends to fill. I was asked by Peter’s family to handle the winding down of his practice, and we have been taking care of closing Peter’s law office over the last few months, and word is already out that Fenton & Keller is coming.”
In practice since 1993, Kesecker’s principal areas of practice are business and real estate transactions; estate planning, trust administration and probate litigation.
He counsels businesses and families who need practical and timely advice in a challenging legal and regulatory environment. He has extensive experience in forming entities, advising clients in business and real estate transactions, and planning for business succession from one generation to the next.
Kesecker received a bachelor’s degree in 1990 from California State Polytechnic University, San Luis Obispo, and his Juris Doctor degree from University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law in 1993 and was admitted to the California Bar that same year.
He is a member of the Monterey County Bar Association, Monterey County Barristers (past member, board member and president), Legal Services For Seniors (past board member and president), Soledad Mission Restoration Committee (past board member) and the Mission-Soledad Rural Fire Protection District.
Kesecker began his legal career as a litigator, which provided him with an ability to structure transactions with clarity and precision to minimize the risks of future disputes. He has worked extensively with businesses in the Salinas Valley, and understands the unique challenges facing the agricultural industry, as well as the opportunities presented in these changing times.
He has enrolled thousands of acres into Farmland Security Zone contracts saving his clients hundreds of thousands of dollars annually in property taxes. He has also handled many probates and trust administrations and has represented clients in probate and estate litigation matters that have required court intervention.
“We are excited about becoming a physical presence in King City,” Kesecker said. “I get to come back to a community I care about, and it will provide an ability for local residents to sit across from their attorney without having to travel to Salinas, Monterey or Paso Robles.”
