623-229-0463 
623-229-0463 
Andre L. Pennington attributes his passion and success as an Arizona estate planning lawyer and licensed financial professional to one thing: wanting to do what’s right for his Family.
“I didn’t have a good family growing up, so my family is the most important thing to me,” he says. “Everything I do is for them, and that’s how I can relate to my clients, how much they want to protect their loved ones.”
This drive puts Andre at the forefront of estate planning services in Surprise, Buckeye, Sun City West, and Peoria. At Pennington Law, PLLC, he concentrates his practice on retirement protection and growth, wills, trusts, estate administration, guardianships/conservatorships, and estate litigation.
A Surprise, Arizona, resident since 2011, Andre is married to his stunning wife, Amanda, and has six children — two sons and four daughters ranging from ages 3 to 16, and two dogs. As a father, he rarely misses a family obligation, as he believes that family is one of the greatest gifts a person can receive.
But that priceless gift is coupled with great responsibility: protecting their future is paramount. With that sentiment, Andre uses his years of estate planning, trial experience, and expertise to guide, navigate, and protect clients’ families’ interests in their most difficult times.
Well-Rounded Through a Blend of Legal, Financial, and Military Experience
What gives Andre an edge is his background. He holds specialized estate planning training and experience as an attorney for the U.S. Air Force. His extensive time before the court includes over 75 jury trials at the state, military and federal levels.
In addition, he leverages his financial services background to enhance the effectiveness of his estate plans. This blend makes him uniquely qualified and able to effectively navigate the waters for retirement protection, estate planning, and estate administration matters.
Andre holds numerous honors and awards for his work in law. These include:
- Accepted to the Forbes Financial Council – Inc 5000 Entrepreneur in 2024;
- High designations from Super Lawyers and Best Attorneys of America 2021, 2022, and 2023;
- Recognition as a Top Rated Lawyer in Arizona;
- A ranking on the America’s Most Honored Lawyers list by the American Registry (an honor reserved for less than 1% of attorneys)
- Recognition in The New York Times as a Power Lawyer by the Lawyers of Distinction 2021 & 2023;
- Recognition in USA Today as a Power Lawyer by the Lawyers of Distinction 2022;
- Being voted Best Attorney in Sun City West 2021 by the Daily Independent in 2021;
- Designations as Best Probate Attorneys in Surprise, Peoria, and Goodyear by Expertise.com;
- Selection as Litigator of the Year 2021 by the American Institute of Trial Lawyers; and
- 2021, 2022, & 2023 recognition from Elite Lawyers.
As a financial professional, Andre owns and operates Pennington Wealth, PLLC. He is also a part-time Judge (Judge Pro Tem) with the Arizona Superior Court of Arizona for Maricopa County and previously served as Judge Pro Tem for the Maricopa County Justice Courts, as well.
In Life, Law, and Community, ‘Every Day is Another Day to Do a Great Thing’
Andre grew up in Southern California, graduating from California State University, Fullerton, and Loyola Law School, Los Angeles. He then started his legal career in 2006, as a trial attorney within the Colorado state courts. In 2007, he joined the U.S. Air Force. Over a four-year period, Andre engaged in estate planning and trial work. During that time, he was recognized by leadership as being within the top 5 percent of trial attorneys in the Air Force.
With a desire to have a more stable home life, Andre left active duty and transferred to the Air Force Reserves, where he held the rank of Major. He served as a trial advocacy instructor, government appellate counsel, and estate planning attorney. Andre practiced as a federal trial attorney for the District of Arizona, handling the highest level of federal cases. In 2014, he decided to go into private practice as a full-time Arizona estate planning, wills, trusts, and probate attorney.
Andre cites the Air Force’s core values — Integrity, Service, Excellence — as the guiding principles behind Pennington Law, PLLC as well as for his work in the community. He explains them as, “Integrity — when no one’s looking you do the right thing; service before self; and excellence in all we do.”
As Andre explains, it starts with asking, “‘How much good can I give to the community?’ I tell my kids every day, ‘Have a great day and do great things.’ And that’s the way I think about it; every day is another day to do a great thing, to change someone’s life.”
With a yearning to give Arizona children the chance to succeed, he founded residential homes dedicated to the well-being of foster children. In addition, he was appointed and served as a part-time judge for the Maricopa County Justice Courts (2015-2017). Andre holds a brown belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and is a coach and lifetime member at De Boa Jiu-Jitsu Academy in Surprise, Arizona.
Andre is a co-founder and director for the Arizona’s Children Coalition. This group connects sports with distressed and vulnerable youth in the West Valley community. “Sports have impacted all the directors in different ways,” he explains. “We thought that was a positive force for kids who are at risk. So we sponsor them for any sports activity, from equine all the way to traditional football, basketball, and martial arts. We raise money, and kids who qualify apply, and we take care of it.”
Andre regularly donates equipment to youth sports teams, as he believes that sports make a difference in shaping young people’s lives. He notes that his days of playing high school and college basketball serve as motivation for wanting to establish a junior college sports scholarship; this way, students can get a second chance at sports if they weren’t able to fulfill their hopes during high school. Andre also served as a Big Brother for the Boys & Girls Club.
Using Law and Financial Know-How to Make Sure Vulnerable People Don’t Get Bullied
Andre especially believes that our older population needs to feel that people care about them — and for the right reasons.
He explains how his grandmother had Alzheimer’s disease — but didn’t have an estate plan. As a 23-year-old, he realized how people like her can be helped through estate planning. So he made a promise to honor her memory and, after gaining legal experience, started his estate planning practice to do “what my grandmother would’ve deserved.”
Andre also makes sure people in retirement communities are not taken advantage of by predatory practices. With his estate planning and financial services practices, he does everything he can to stop the vulnerable population from “getting bullied.”
“They don’t know all the rules,” he says. “They don’t know all the options. And because I’m not looking to make the highest amount of dollars off of it, I’m willing to show them the other options. And it’s better for them.”
- California State University, Fullerton, B.A., 2003
- Loyola Law School, Los Angeles, Juris Doctor, 2006
- Colorado, 2006
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces, 2007
- Air Force Court of Criminal Appeals, 2007
- Arizona (Probate and Trust Section Member), 2016
