Lauren Garner is an experienced litigator and mediator whose practice emphasizes probate, trusts and guardian/conservatorships. Lauren’s clients rely on that experience and her sensitivity in matters that touch families, trusts, and estates.
Dedication and personal involvement are a critical part of Lauren’s practice. She feels a deep sense of accomplishment in her 1998 move to Phoenix, after nearly a lifetime of business and personal contacts in Miami, Florida. Here, she has developed a flourishing practice in the field of probate, trust and guardianship/conservatorship litigation and mediation.
Lauren enjoys dual bar membership – in both Arizona and Florida. She is active in probate and trust organizations and committees on both the Arizona State Bar and the Maricopa County Bar Association. She is a Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (“ACTEC”) where she is a member of the Fiduciary Litigation Committee. Lauren is currently the State Chair of the Arizona ACTEC Fellows. Lauren has been repeatedly recognized as one of the Top 100 Lawyers by AZ Business Leaders since 2020. She has been recognized as a Southwest Super Lawyer since 2015 and has been repeatedly recognized in editions of Best Lawyers in America in the area of Trusts and Estate Litigation since 2016. She also was named as one of the 2017 Women of Influence by Best Lawyers. Lauren was named as a 2019 top 25 Arizona Women Attorneys by Super Lawyers.
An advocate of mediation and other non-traditional dispute resolution services, Lauren underwent a lengthy training and certification process to become a Circuit Court Mediator in Florida. She was been part of a small committee that developed and presented a two day Probate Mediation Training program. Lauren uses her experiences to work with clients and professionals and is a frequent speaker on ways to avoid probate and trust litigation. Lauren has volunteered her time and experience to her professional community. She is a Judge Pro Tempore for Maricopa County Superior Court in the Probate and Mental Health Division. In that capacity she serves as a Settlement Judge to mediate probate litigation cases. She volunteers for the Probate Lawyers Assistance Project offering pro bono assistance in probate and trust matters to low income individuals. She was been a member of the Executive Council of the Probate and Trust Section of the State Bar of Arizona from 2006 to 2019 (serving as Chair for one year) and of the Executive Council of the Elder Law, Mental Health and Special Needs Trust Section from 2011 to 2014, and was on the Board of the Estate Planning and Probate Section of the Maricopa County Bar Association from 2004-2007.
Professional Experience
- Experienced litigator, with emphasis on probate, trusts, conservatorships and guardianships
- Trained mediator for probate, trust and civil matters
- Advocate of mediation and other no-traditional dispute resolution
- Probate mediator, Superior Court, Maricopa County, Arizona
- Frequent speaker at CLE seminars and at other organizations
Awards & Recognition
- Best Lawyers in America Litigation - Trust and Estates, 2014- 2025
- Southwest Super Lawyer Estate & Trust Litigation, Estate Planning & Probate 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025
- Super Lawyers - Top 25 Arizona Women Attorneys, 2019, 2020, 2021
- Martindale-Hubbell Rated AV Preeminent for 35 consecutive years by Peers and Judiciary
- Martindale-Hubbell, Client Reviewed
- Phoenix Magazine, Top Lawyer, Wills & Trusts Law, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025
- AZ Business Leaders, 2020, 2021, 2022
- ELEANOR ter HORST Distinguished Service Award by the Arizona State Bar Probate and Trust Section, 2022
- AZ Big Media - Top 100 Lawyers- Probate and Trust Litigation and Mediation, 2020
- Arizona Business Leader- Alternative Dispute Resolution, AZ Big Media, 2020
- Best Lawyers in America - Trust and Estates Litigation - Lawyer of the Year, 2019
- Arizona Business Leader - Probate and Trust Litigation and Mediation, AZ Big Media, 2019
- Top Attorney in the Southwest, 2018
- AVVO rating 10
- Best Lawyers- Women in the Law, 2017
- The Legal Network - Top Lawyers in Arizona, 2018
- Arizona's Finest Lawyers, 2014
Fellow: American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC).
