Douglas Thorne is a powerful man, feared by his adversaries and respected by his clients and peers. As one the leading tax and estate-planning attorneys in the San Francisco Bay area, he is in demand among the wealthiest and most powerful. The cases he is assigned grow increasingly more complex and challenging. Professionally, it would appear that he has it all-but Thorne is still unsatisfied.

He aspires to even greater fame and power, as only the leading estate planners who have been named partner enjoy. He longs for more than just respect. He wants power. Thorne delves deep within the hidden world of tax planning and estate management, a world most never see. As various players battle for control and the future wealth of the families involved, the stakes are high for Thorne and his clients, and the consequences of losing are too high to contemplate. That's why his clients put their futures in his capable and ambitious hands.

He is brought in to litigate a high-profile and complicated case that could very well give him the recognition that he desires. But even with his skill, it could all come down to one detail-a detail that, if mishandled, could cost him everything. In this case, he's all too aware of how the outcome could impact his future. Will he be the champion-or will he taste the bitter humiliation of defeat?