Michael R. Morris to Moderate at 2012 Entertainment Industry Conference
Michael R. Morris will once again be a moderator for the annual Entertainment Industry Conference, presented by the CalCPA Education Foundation. He will moderate the “Music Industry Updates” portion of the day long event, which will focus on recent tax updates and how they relate to the entertainment industry. Michael is an active member of the conference’s planning committee and a frequent participant in this popular event. For more information or to register, click here.
Laurie Murphy Interviewed on “Schau’s Mediation Insights”
Senior litigation partner, Laurie Murphy, was recently interviewed by Jan Frankel Schau on her popular online blog, “Schau’s Mediation Insights.” Laurie gave some insights of her own in the area of avoiding trial through the use of mediation and arbitration. She even had some out-of-the-box creative ways to resolve conflicts when a mediation doesn’t turn out how the parties and their counsel hope.
Click here to read the entire article and be sure to contact Laurie at mlm@vrmlaw.com with your questions on mediation, arbitration and other alternative dispute resolution tactics.
Valensi Rose Litigators Win $18 Million Lawsuit
Valensi Rose, PLC litigators Laurie Murphy and Lynda Chung won an award of $18,223,343 on behalf of their client, Brittnee Barnes, involving her father’s Trust. At issue in the case were the distributions and investments by Brittnee’s older half-siblings, Tom and Kristine Barnes, of funds derived from various business and real estate holdings their father, Thomas H. Barnes, amassed and acquired during his lifetime, including Tom’s Farms in Corona. The award was issued on February 1, 2012 by Honorable Judge Harold W. Hopp at Riverside Superior Court in Indio, California. Having settled with Kristine Barnes, the case proceeded to trial against Tom Barnes only.
“After a six week trial in Indio, in Riverside County, and after numerous post-trial briefs and hearings over the past year, we obtained a ruling in favor of our client that her older half-brother, Tom Barnes breached his obligations as trustee of the trust that their father Thomas H. Barnes created. The court’s ruling states what we have contended all along – that Tom Barnes spent trust assets and gambled with our client’s inheritance, living a lavish lifestyle and investing Trust assets in risky businesses in which he had no experience, much of which took place while his minor half siblings were in the foster care system,” said Ms. Murphy.
Brittnee’s father also had 1,852 ounces of gold and $855,000 in cash in safe deposit boxes when he died that Tom Barnes argued was meant by their father to be a gift to him. The Court disagreed and awarded the client and her younger brother the fair market value of the gold that the Court found their father intended to be held in trust for his two youngest children.
The Court also found that Tom Barnes breached his fiduciary obligations, acted with malice, fraud or oppression and awarded a total of $18,223,343 in favor of the client and her younger brother. Because the Court found that Tom Barnes converted trust assets in bad faith, it awarded double damages, which is permitted under the Probate Code. The Court permanently removed Tom and Kristine Barnes as trustees of the trust and appointed the professional trustee who has been running the businesses since 2008, when Tom and Kristine Barnes’ powers were suspended. The judgment is expected to be satisfied when the businesses and real estate is sold.
Case Name: In Re the Matter of the Thomas H. Barnes Separate Property Trust
Place: Riverside Superior Court, Indio, California
Case No.: RIP089261
Presiding Judge: Harold W. Hopp
Date of Award: February 1, 2012
For more information or assistance with a similar issue, contact Laurie Murphy at mlm@vrmlaw.com or Lynda Chung at lic@vrmlaw.com.
Michael R. Morris to Speak at 2012 California Copyright Conference
Partner Michael R. Morris will be a featured panelist at the upcoming California Copyright Conference dinner meeting on March 20, 2012. The session, entitled “Show Me the Money II: Financial Strategies for Copyright Stakeholders,” will review ways to hedge against a downturn in copyright values, raise cash, minimize taxes and protect heirs when your livelihood depends on the value of your copyrights.
Click here for more information and to register for the event.
Congrats to Valensi Rose’s 2012 Super Lawyers!
Congrats to the following Valensi Rose attorneys named by Law and Politics Magazine and the Publishers of Los Angeles Magazine as “Super Lawyers” among Southern California lawyers for 2012 in their noted areas of expertise:
- Philip S. Magaram (Estate Planning & Probate)
- Michael R. Morris (Tax)
- Bruce D. Sires (Estate Planning & Probate)
- Margaret E. Lennon (Estate Planning & Probate)
To see all of Valensi Rose’s Super Lawyers and learn more about the selection process, visit the Super Lawyers website here.
Bruce D. Sires Interviewed on KTLA News About Child Actors’ Rights
Valensi Rose, PLC tax and wealth planning attorney Bruce D. Sires was interviewed Thursday, February 9th by legal correspondent Manny Medrano for the Inside The Law segment of the KTLA Channel 5 News. Bruce shared some insight regarding the rights of child actors when it comes to their earnings.
Click the link below to watch the interview segment and learn about how child actors’ earnings must be treated by law.
Inside the Law with Manny Medrano – Child Actors
For more information on the subject or any other related questions, please contact Bruce at bds@vrmlaw.com or (310) 277-8011.
Michael R. Morris Interviewed on KTLA Channel 5 News
Valensi Rose, PLC partner Michael R. Morris was interviewed Thursday, January 26th by legal correspondent Manny Medrano for the Inside The Law segment of the KTLA Channel 5 News. Michael shared some key tips to avoiding IRS audits when filing income tax returns.
Click here to watch the interview.
For more information on the subject or any other tax related questions, please contact Michael at mrm@vrmlaw.com or (310) 277-8011.
Geoffrey A. Weg Speaks at Cal Poly Pomona Inaugural Tax Day Seminar On October 28, 2011
Geoff spoke on a variety of income tax issues and new legislation from the past year, as well as what is to be expected in the year to come.
Cal Poly Pomona Inaugural Tax Institute
Date: October 28, 2011
Time: 7:30am – 5:00pm
Location: Sheraton Fairplex Hotel and Conference Center
601 West McKinley Avenue Pomona, California, 91768
Arlen R. Gunner Acknowledged in BHBA Bar Brief
9/12/2011 – Valensi Rose Managing Partner, Arlen R. Gunner, was recently acknowledged in the September/October 2011 edition of the Beverly Hills Bar Association’s Bar Brief. Mr. Gunner recently represented the BHBA in their negotiations for a new office lease. The bar has outgrown its current location and will be taking up a floor in the Rolex building in Beverly Hills on the corner of Wilshire and Canon. Thanks to Mr. Gunner’s efforts and those of several others involved with the BHBA, the bar will have a new, and completely up-to-date, home in the spring of 2012. Valensi Rose has a long-standing relationship with the BHBA and appreciates the opportunities to give back whenever possible.
Gary F. Torrell Published in The Corporate Counselor
Gary F. Torrell was recently published in the Summer 2011 edition of “The Corporate Counselor,” a publication for in-house counsel provided by The Corporate Law Departments Section of the Los Angeles County Bar Association. Gary was invited to write the keystone article for the Summer issue because of his background as in-house counsel for several corporations.
Gary’s article, entitled “Winning Strategies For Resolving Consumer Complaints,” discusses the challenges of defending a coporation against a single or small group of consumers. The article also gives some valuable tips and tricks to assist in-house counsel with navigating the delicacies of defending their company against consumer complaints. Click here to read the full article.
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