Articles Posted in Uncategorized

By Ashley Taylor of disabledparents.org

The months and weeks that lead up to a baby’s delivery are filled with equal amounts of excitement and trepidation. All parents, from new ones to seasoned vets, fret over whether the home is ready for their new addition and if they bought the best stroller. For a disabled parent, these fears are multiplied. With a little planning and research on available resources, however, every parent can enjoy raising their newborn.

 It’s never too early to start planning

Effective February 1, 2016, Judge William Barry will be assigned to Dept. 67 of the Los Angeles Superior Court Central Probate Division at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse, 111 N. Hill St., Los Angeles California, 90012.

All cases currently assigned to Judge David S. Cunningham are reassigned to Judge Barry as of the effective date. All matters currently on calendar in Department 67 shall remain scheduled on the dates and times previously set, unless otherwise notified.

Next, on a different note with insight from our colleague Attorney Michelle Lerman, of Lerman Law Partners, LLP and Certified Estate Planning Specialist

We are looking forward to attending the annual Los Angeles County Bar Association View From the Bench lunch. This year’s program will include a “State of the Court” address by the Hon. Maria E. Stratton and “Top Ten Tips on Addressing Probate Notes,” presented by Commissioner Brenda Penny. The Hon. Daniel S. Murphy, Hon. Clifford L. Klein, Hon. David S. Cunningham, Hon. Lesley C. Green, and Hon. David J. Cowan will also be joining the presentation for lunch.  The program will be presented at Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels Conference Center 555 West Temple Street Los Angeles, CA 90012.

At Ginzburg & Bronshteyn, LLP we are dedicated to providing efficient, effective, and affordable solutions to clients involved in conservatorship cases, trust and estate disputes, as well as other types of family law issues. We are here to help you and your loved ones. To discuss your needs and discover your options, consult the Los Angeles incapacity and estate planning attorneys at Ginzburg & Bronshteyn, LLP.

Our firm also handles disputes over the decedent’s intent. For example, when a person dies, they might have named only some, but not all of his or her children in a will. Most likely, the unnamed children would contest the validity of the will, and estate litigation may ensue to determine whether the decedent intended to omit certain children or whether the omission was unintentional. This is but one example of a dispute that can arise in the execution of an estate plan. If you or someone you know is dealing with a dispute over the administration or execution of trust or estate in California, you should contact an experienced trusts and estates litigation attorney to ensure your interests are represented.  Attorney Bronshteyn also serves on the probate volunteer panel of the Los Angeles Superior Court, and has represented executors, administrators, trustees, conservators, and conservatees, in court proceedings.

Just this month Ginzburg & Bronshteyn, LLP partner Yasha Bronshteyn, was given an “AV” rating from his peers, which means that he was deemed to have very high professional ethics and preeminent legal ability. Only lawyers with the highest ethical standards and professional ability receive a Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Rating.

The Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Ratings evaluates lawyers based on the anonymous opinions of members of the Bar and the Judiciary, including both those who are rated and those who are not. The first review to establish a lawyer’s rating usually occurs three years after his/her first admission to the Bar.

Martindale-Hubbell conducts secure online Peer Review Ratings surveys of lawyers across multiple jurisdictions and geographic locations, in similar areas of practice as the lawyer being rated. Reviewers are instructed to assess their colleagues’ general ethical standards and legal ability in a specific area of practice. Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Ratings were created in 1887 as an objective tool that would attest to a lawyer’s ability and professional ethics, based on the confidential opinions of other lawyers and judges who have worked with the lawyers they are evaluating.

On January 20, 2015, Ginzburg & Bronshteyn, LLP partner, Yasha Bronshteyn, attended the New California Conservatorship Jurisdiction Act: Protecting Conservatees from Multi-State Elder and Dependent Adult Abuse,  presented by the Beverly Hills Bar Association Trusts and Estates Section at Lawry’s in Beverly Hills.

The program and speakers focused on a number of key issues and changes to conservatorship law and the requirements set forth in the Los Angeles Superior Court Rules.

According to United States Census Bureau the population of the United States is aging. Approximately 40.3 million residents were age 65 or older in 2010, more than in any previous census. Adults in that age bracket also comprised a larger percentage of the total population than in the past. That trend is expected to continue as the baby boom generation becomes elderly. As the number of elderly adults increases, the need for geriatric care is also increasing.

Firm partner, Yasha Bronshteyn, attended the People Behaving Badly: Trustees and Beneficiaries Abusing Each Other and Settlors program which was presented on September 19, 2014, at the Millennium Biltmore Grand, by the Los Angeles Bar Association-Trust & Wills Section.   

The program focused on the common problem of people abusing each other and the legal ramifications of that abuse. The first panel discussed how some trustees abuse their fiduciary responsibilities and how beneficiaries may take advantage of their trustees. The second panel will discuss what constitutes criminal elder abuse, how to report elder abuse in all its forms to the authorities, and what to expect after such a report has been made.

This panel examined conflicts that arise between beneficiaries and trustees regarding administration of trusts.  Focus was directed on areas in which conflict often arises, such as asset risk tolerance, asset selection, asset concentrations, discretionary distributions, notice to remainder beneficiaries, the party’s view of their role, and regulatory compliance requirements.  Drawing from their numerous years of experience in resolving fiduciary conflicts, the speakers will shared examples of conflicts that have arisen and methods they have discovered which can minimize litigation.

Brenda Penny has been elected a Los Angeles Superior Court commissioner, Presiding Judge David Wesley informed judicial officers. Brenda Penny has been hearing the morning probate calendar in Department 5 of the Los Angeles Superior Court, Central District. Commissioner Penny, a former probate attorney for the Court, was elected in balloting by the court’s judges. The Court has had a commissioner post open since David Cowan, who hears Probate Matters in Department 9 of the Los Angeles Superior Court, Central District, was recently appointed as a judge.

At Ginzburg & Bronshteyn, LLP we are dedicated to providing efficient, effective, and affordable solutions to clients involved in conservatorship cases, trust and estate disputes, as well as other cases concerning revocable inter vivos trusts.  Incapacity may be relevant in all of these types of cases.  California law on incapacity can be very complex when it applies. Probate Code section 810 provides for a “rebuttable presumption” with respect to capacity: 810. The Legislature finds and declares the following:

(a) For purposes of this part, there shall exist a rebuttable presumption affecting the burden of proof that all persons have the capacity to make decisions and to be responsible for their acts or decisions.

On March 18, 2014, the panel of Probate Judges discussed the current state of Probate Court in Los Angeles County and addressed questions and concerns submitted by members of the Beverly Hills Bar Association. Fortunately seven of the nine probate judges in Central District were able to attend the lunch at Lawry’s in Beverly Hills. The Judges present were:

Supervising Judge Michael I. Levanas (Department 5)

Judge Reva G. Goetz (Department 9)