About Us

Heidi Royal is a trusts and estates attorney in Charlotte, North Carolina offering unparalleled expertise in a boutique firm setting. After practicing as a partner in the trusts and estates practice group at Robinson, Bradshaw and Hinson, Heidi decided to offer her services in the more personalized and relaxed atmosphere of a boutique practice.

Heidi is an accomplished trusts and estates attorney.  She is a Fellow in the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel and is a North Carolina State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Estate Planning and Probate Law.

Heidi assists clients in estate planning to design wills, revocable trusts and irrevocable trusts to ensure the desired disposition of assets upon death in a tax efficient manner.  When an individual passes away, Heidi assists families with the administration of the estate, including the probate process, trust funding and implementation, and estate, gift and income tax returns.

Heidi received her undergraduate degree in 2001 from Rhodes College, graduating Phi Beta Kappa.  In 2004, Heidi graduated summa cum laude from the University of Georgia School of Law, where she was a member of the Georgia Law Review and Order of the Coif.

Parker is an associate at Heidi E. Royal Law, PLLC where he prepares estate plans that maximize the transfer of wealth while preserving familial harmony. Additionally, Parker works alongside his clients and their family members throughout the estate administration process in order to seamlessly implement those plans when the time comes.

Parker, a Charlotte Christian School alumnus, attended the Virginia Military Institute where he commissioned into the U.S. Army as a Distinguished Military Graduate in 2014. His time in service allowed him to work with some of the most elite units in the military while gaining intelligence experiences at multiple levels of operations.

Following his military service, Parker earned his Juris Doctorate from the Wake Forest University School of Law in 2021 where he focused his studies on trusts and estates and other transactional practice areas. He also participated in the Elder Law Clinic and Wills Pro Bono Project.

Maria is an associate with Heidi E. Royal Law, PLLC. Her practice consists of the development and execution of estate plans to ensure that assets are transferred at death to clients’ desired beneficiaries in a tax efficient manner as well as the representation of clients with regard to estate administration and trust administration manners. Maria also prepares federal estate tax returns, gift tax returns, and fiduciary income tax returns.

Maria received a Bachelor of the Arts in History as well as Classical Studies from the University of Florida in 2014. Maria earned her Juris Doctorate from the Wake Forest University School of Law in 2017. During her time at law school, she was a member of the Wake Forest Moot Court. Maria served as a Notes and Comments Editor for the Wake Forest Journal of Business and Intellectual Property Law. She received the CALI Excellence Award for Appellate Advocacy and Federal Income Tax Law. Maria also served as a research assistant for several professors and as a teaching assistant for Appellate Advocacy. Additionally, Maria practiced as a student attorney for the Wake Forest Elder Law Clinic.

Jodi P. Zbinden is Of Counsel and practices in the area of trusts and estates.

Jodi began her practice in 1989 in Dallas, Texas with the law firm of Thompson & Knight before moving to Charlotte in 1990 to join the trusts and estates group of Moore & Van Allen. In 1996 she joined the Personal Estate Strategies group at First Union as legal advisor before returning to private practice with Moore & Van Allen in 1998.  In 2001, Jodi opened her solo practice office to continue to provide estate planning and estate administration services for twenty years in a more personal setting.

Jodi received her undergraduate degree in 1986 from Davidson College, cum laude with honors in history, graduating Phi Beta Kappa.  In 1989, Jodi graduated with honors from the University of Texas School of Law, where she was a member of the International Law Journal.

Jodi brings thirty years of trusts and estate experience assisting clients with the estate planning design and implementation process as well as assisting families with the estate administration and probate process.