Carol Kingery Ritter Bio

Carol Kingery Ritter is a partner practicing in the firm’s business and real property practice groups. Carol’s practice includes general corporate formation, compliance and restructuring and business contracts with an emphasis on serving wine industry business. Carol has specific expertise in the preparation and negotiation of essential wine business contracts, such as grape purchase agreements, distribution agreements, wine production agreements, vineyard leases and vineyard redevelopment agreements, and counseling clients through complex vineyard, winery and wine business sales and acquisitions. Carol’s expertise in the area of real property and business transactions offers clients comprehensive counsel from the formation and restructuring of business entities to acquire assets or launch new businesses to the investigation of complicated real property and title issues. Carol also counsels clients on the formation of American Viticultural Areas through TTB. While at DP&F, Carol has represented American and International wine companies and grapegrowers, wine importing companies, wine brokers, developers, REITs, financial institutions and public and private companies in matters ranging from business entity formation and restructuring, commercial transactions, real estate sales, acquisitions and leasing, business and asset sales and acquisitions, and debt and equity financing transactions. Prior to joining DP&F in 2008, Carol practiced in San Luis Obispo at the law firm Adamski, Moroski, Madden & Green, LLP. While at AMM&G, Carol worked on transactions and litigation at the State Superior Court and Appellate Court levels involving real property, business and construction matters. While in law school, Carol was a legal intern with the Oakland Raiders and a summer associate with Curtis, Mallet-Prevost, Colt & Mosle LLP in New York, New York. She also provided consulting services to the non-profit organization Justice Network on Women. Carol has a long history of volunteer and non-profit work with the Women’s Positive Legal Action Network where she worked with HIV-positive women in prison to improve health education within the prison system and provided legal advocacy support. She has lectured extensively and published on the subject. Carol lives in Napa with her husband, Scott Ritter, who also works in the wine industry, and their twin girls, Mia and Shay.