About Eric R.
Eric R. Bardwell trained as a lawyer on the West Coast. He earned his J.D. from Pepperdine University School of Law in 2008 after completing a B.S. at California State University, San Diego State University in 2005. The timetable of his education laid a clear path into private practice and the specialized work he would pursue.
He began his legal career in 2008 at WTAS LLC. Early work there introduced him to estate and trust matters. In 2011 he moved to Lane Powell PC, spending time deepening his courtroom and transactional experience. A year later he joined Freeman Freeman & Smiley, LLP, where he continued to handle estate planning and probate matters for individual and institutional clients. By 2016 he became a partner at Jeffer Mangels Butler & Mitchell LLP, a step that reflected his steady rise within firms that handle complex estate and trust work.
Bardwell is admitted to practice in California and Washington and before the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. He holds certification as a Specialist in Estate Planning, Trust & Probate from the State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization. That credential is earned through a combination of experience, peer review and testing, and it signals a concentrated legal practice rather than a generalist approach.
He participates in professional organizations across two states. His memberships include the King County Bar Association, the American Bar Association, the California Bar Association, the Orange County Bar Association, the Orange County Estate Planning Council, and the Washington State Bar Association. Those memberships keep him connected to changing rules, probate court practices and developments in fiduciary law. Colleagues describe him as methodical in document drafting and careful in court proceedings. Clients typically encounter him on matters that require long-form planning documents, trustee guidance or estate administration after a death.
At Jeffer Mangels Butler & Mitchell LLP Bardwell works on estate planning, trust administration and probate litigation. He combines courtroom knowledge from earlier roles with the drafting and advisory work that estate practice demands. He handles matters for individuals, families and fiduciaries navigating tax, trust and probate questions. He currently practices at Jeffer Mangels Butler & Mitchell LLP, where his work focuses on estate planning, trusts and probate.
