Bruce Sires and Mayer Nazarian Speaking at 11th Annual Advanced Estate Planning Conference
Valensi Rose tax and estate planning attorney, Bruce Sires and Mayer Nazarian, will speak that the 11th Annual Advanced Estate Planning Conference sponsored by the Korean-American CPA Society and Professional Advisors Group on May 31, 2013.
Mayer Nazarian’s presentation, entitled “Domestic Production Activity Deduction,” will show how US taxpayers can receive a 9% deduction against taxable income based upon revenue generated from qualifying activities occurring in the US.
Bruce Sires will speak on “Hot Estate Planning Topics.” His presentation will focus on grantor trusts, GRATS, sales to grantors, nontaxable gifts, portability of the annual exclusion and loans to children.
Valensi Rose’s 60th Anniversary Highlighted in Daily Journal
Valensi Rose, PLC celebrates its 60th Anniversary this year, marking a milestone in our long history as a small, yet nimble law firm. The firm has always encouraged cooperation and cross-marketing among its attorneys, which has contributed to its decades of success. The Daily Journal noted this in its article published on Thursday, October 25, 2012, in which it highlighted Valensi Rose’s ability to adapt to and accommodate its clients’ needs. Click here to read the full article.
Michael Morris to Moderate Music Producer Roundtable at California Copyright Conference
Music and entertainment attorney Michael R. Morris will moderate the California Copyright Conference (CCC) Music Producer Roundtable, entitled “So What Does a Music Producer Do Anyway,” on Tuesday evening, October 9, 2012 at the Sportsmen’s Lodge in Sherman Oaks, California.
“I’m very pleased to be moderating this roundtable, since it will bring together three multi-generational producers working in different genres and one producer manager,” said Mr. Morris. “They will discuss how they got started in the business, how the changes in the music industry have affected the business of being a music producer and recording budgets, the art and craft of making records, the changes in recording technology, and more.”
Mr. Morris’ co-moderator is Kent Liu, Esq., Vice President of Business and Legal Affairs at Concord Music Group in Beverly Hills. The panelists include Walter Afanasieff, a multiple Grammy award winning producer whose credits include records by Mariah Carey, Celine Dion, Barbara Streisand, Darryl Hall, Michael Bolton, Kenny G, and Chris Botti; Paul Fox, whose producing credits include records by the Wallflowers, Ziggy Marley, Phish, They Might Be Giants, 10,000 Maniacs, Sugarcubes, XTC, and Robyn Hitchcock; Brian Kennedy, a Grammy winning producer whose producing credits include records by Rihanna, Chris Brown, Kelly Clarkson, and Jennifer Hudson; and Alan Melina of New Heights Entertainment and a renowned personal manager whose producer clients include RedOne, Adam Anders, and Orange Factory Music Moderator.
Mr. Morris is an active member of the conference’s planning committee and a frequent participant in this important industry event. He
is past president of the California Copyright Conference and has been named a “Super Lawyer” among Southern California lawyers for seven consecutive years, from 2006 through 2012. He was also designated by the Los Angeles Business Journal as one of “L.A.’s
Top 100 Lawyers” in 2009.
Mr. Morris’ clients include Grammy winners and other recording artists, record labels, production companies, music composers, on-screen talent and talent agents. For more information or to register for the event, visit the California Copyright Conference at http://www.theccc.org/.
Mayer Nazarian to Speak on the Domestic Production Activity Deduction
Tax and wealth planning attorney, Mayer Nazarian, is speaking on October 16, 2012 at UBS Financial Services in Beverly Hills. The seminar will be geared towards CPAs as an audience and will focus on the Domestic Production Activity Deduction. Mayer will explain the details of the deduction and highlight its broad applicability to various industries ranging from manufacturing to software development to film/sound production to real estate construction. Generally, any business activity in the US, other than pure distribution or resale, could potentially qualify for this valuable 9% tax deduction. Below are the details of the event:
“Domestic Production Activity Deduction” with Mayer Nazarian, JD, MBT
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
1:00 p.m. – 2:45 p.m.
UBS Financial Services Inc.
131 South Rodeo Drive
3rd Floor
Beverly Hills, CA 90212
Complimentary lunch and valet parking will be provided.
RSVP or for more information: Nicholas Schirripa | 310-281-3859 | nicholas.schirripa@ubs.com
Geoffrey A. Weg to Speak at State Bar Annual Meeting
Geoff Weg will be a featured speaker at the 85th Annual Meeting of the State Bar of California, October 11-14, 2012, in Monterey. Geoff’s program, entitled “The Taxation of Judgments and Settlements,” will cover everything from the general principles of judgment and settlement taxation to the specific taxation guidelines for emotional distress awards and attorney’s fees.
The session is scheduled for Friday, October 12, 2012, 2:15 PM – 3:45 PM and will be presented with co-panelist Eric D. Swenson. For more information or to register for the State Bar Annual Meeting, click here.
Valensi Rose Profiled in the Daily Journal
Valensi Rose and Managing Partner, Arlen R. Gunner, were profiled in the August 17, 2012 Los Angeles Daily Journal. The article featured a spotlight on the firm and Arlen’s team-oriented management style. Click here to read the full article.
Geoffrey A. Weg Appointed to State Bar’s Taxation Section Executive Committee
Valensi Rose, PLC tax attorney Geoff Weg was recently appointed as Vice Chair of the State Bar’s Taxation Section Executive Committee. Geoff has been appointed to serve for the 2012 – 2013 term, which will become effective at the 2012 State Bar Annual Meeting on October 14, 2012. This marks Geoff’s third year serving on the Executive Committee and follows the firm’s longstanding tradition of participation in and support for the State Bar’s Taxation Section.
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.
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