Publications and Lectures by Michael G. Desmarais

Published Opinions

Estate of Kouba (2002) 95 Cal. App. 4th 1194

Publications

"Why an Intestate Heir Should Think Twice Before Petitioning to Admit a Will to Probate", Silicon Valley Bar Association, "The Scrivenor", Trust & Estates Quarterly, First Quarter, 2006
"Who Has the Burden of Proof?", Silicon Valley Bar Association, "The Scrivenor", Trust & Estates Quarterly, Third Quarter, 2005
"California Trust and Probate Litigation - Litigation Tools", CEB 2005
"Moeller v. Superior Court: Attorney-Client Privilege Belongs to Person Who 'Currently' Occupies Office of Trustee", Vol. 19, No. 3, December 1997, CEB Estate Planning & California Probate Reporter
"The Fiduciary, His Counsel And The Attorney-Client Privilege", Vol. 136, No. 6, May 1997, Trusts & Estates; Litigation Alert, Estate Planning, Trust and Probate News, State Bar of California
"Legal Malpractice in Estate Planning and Administration and How to Avoid It," Vol. 5, No. 5, Winter/Spring, 1983, Estate Planning Trust and Probate News, State Bar of California
"Excessive Bail and Penal Code Section 13521," 23 Hastings Law Journal, 697, 1972

Lectures

State Bar of California, Taxation Section, 2011 Annual Meeting “Death, Taxes & Malpractice Traps–Avoiding the Top Ten Mistakes in Estate and Tax Planning” (November 2011)
Silicon Valley Bar Association, “Matters That Hit the Wallet–A Comprehensive Overview of Attorney’s Fees in Probate” (October 2011)
The Southern California Tax & Estate Planning Forum, “Estate and Trust Litigation” (October 2011)
PFAC 2011 Conference, “The Ethical Conundrum: Damned if you Do . . . Damned if you Don’t” (May 2011)
Monterey Estate Planning Study Group and CPE Forum, “The Giants Won the World Series and How Much Quack Can You Get From a Lame Duck” (February 2011)
San Mateo County Estate Planning Council, “The Giants Won the World Series and How Much Quack Can You Get From a Lame Duck” (January 2011)
Silicon Valley Bar Association and Santa Cruz County Estate Planning Council, “The Giants Won the World Series and How Much Quack Can You Get From a Lame Duck” (December 2010)
Professional Fiduciary Association of California, “Litigation, Tax Challenges, Asset & Client Control” (October 2010)
The Southern California Tax & Estate Planning Forum, “Damages, Fees and Costs in Estate Litigation” (October 2010)
Create TV, Financial Insider Weekly, “Your Rights as a Beneficiary” (October 2010)
Create TV, Financial Insider Weekly, “Second Marriage Estate Planning” (June 2010)
Silicon Valley Bar Association, “Expert Witnesses in Probate Litigation” (May 2010)
Silicon Valley Bar Association, “Pigs Fly, Cubs Win World Series, Hell Freezes Over and Three Blind Men Will Guide Your T & E Practice in 2010" (December 2009)
Financial Insider Weekly, “Your Rights as a Beneficiary” (October 2009)
Silicon Valley Bar Association, "Estate Planning in the Brave (And Poorer) New World" (December 2008)
Continuing Education of the Bar, "Elder Law: Remedies for Financial Abuse" (July/August 2008)
Professional Fiduciary Association of California, Silicon Valley Chapter, "Professional Fiduciary and Conflicts of Interest" (June 2008)
Professional Fiduciary Association of California Annual Conference, "Litigation and the Fiduciary" (May 2008)
Silicon Valley Bar Association, "Probate Trials and Tribulations" (May 2008)
Continuing Education of the Bar, "Ethics and Malpractice Issues - Protection Tips for Trust & Estate Attorneys" (January 2008)
Silicon Valley Bar Association, "Changing our Plans in 2008: New Laws, New Interpretations, and How to Handle the Transition" (December 2007)
Santa Cruz Estate Planning Council, "Probate Code Sections 850 and 17000" (October 2007)
Paralegal Association of Santa Clara County, "Leading Your Client Through a Trust Allocation" (October 2007)
Continuing Education of the Bar, "Estate Planning Scams, Botched Trusts & Other Disasters" (July/August 2007)
Santa Clara University Law School, Guest Lecturer, "Elder Abuse - The Civil Perspective" (February 2007)
Silicon Valley Bar Association, "Changing Our Plans in 2007: New Laws, New Interpretations and How to Handle the Transition" (December 2006)
Silicon Valley Bar Association, "Probate Code Sections 850 and 17200" (September 2006)
Continuing Education of the Bar, "Ethics and Malpractice Issues–Protection Tips for Trust & Estate Attorneys" (January 2006 and March 2006)
Estate Planning Council of Diablo Valley, "Why You Can't Estate Plan Around Estate Litigation" (January 2006)
Silicon Valley Bar Association, "Taxes, Trusts and Planning in Disastrous Times (December 2005)
Silicon Valley Bar Association, "Provisional Remedies in Probate Litigation" (June 2005)
Current Issues Regarding the Duties of Fiduciaries and Those Who Serve Them (May 2005 San Francisco)
Continuing Education of the Bar, Elder Law Litigation: Remedies for Financial Abuse (February 2005 San Francisco, March 2005 Sacramento)
Silicon Valley Bar Association, The Trusts & Estates Section, "The Continuing Search for WMD (Ways to Manage Death, Disability and Dissolution) (December 2004)
National Business Institute, "Elder Care in California" (September 2004)
Trusts Commission of Alameda County Bar Association, "The Trust and Probate Attorney as a Trial Lawyer" (May 2004)
Silicon Valley Bar Association, The Trusts & Estates Section, Moderator, "The Mother of All Will Contests (April 2004)
West Valley Bar Association, "Why Can't We Do It Like They Do in England? (April 2004)
Silicon Valley Bar Association, The Trusts & Estates Section, "The Good, The Bad and The Ugly–Recent Developments in Estate Planning, Administration and Litigation (December 2003)
Santa Cruz County Bar Association, "The Good, The Bad and The Ugly–Recent Developments in Estate Planning, Administration and Litigation (December 2003)
Silicon Valley Bar Association, The Trusts & Estates Section, "No Contest Clauses–The Disaster Waiting to Happen (November 2003)
Continuing Education of the Bar, Antidotes for Estate Planning Scams, Botched Trusts & Other Disasters (November 2003 San Francisco, October 2003 Sacramento)
Santa Clara County Estate Planning Council, "Elder Abuse: Estate and Trust Litigation" (March 2003)
Silicon Valley Bar Association, The Estate of Kouba- Due Execution, Exercise of a Power of Appointment and the "Substantial Compliance" Rule (February 2003)
San Mateo County Bar Association,"Update in Down Times–When The Bills Arrive (February 2003)
Santa Cruz Bar Association, "Update in Down Times–When The Bills Arrive (December 2002)
Silicon Valley Bar Association, Estate Planning, Probate & Trust Section, "Update in Down Times–When The Bills Arrive (December 2002)
Silicon Valley Bar Association, Estate Planning, Probate & Trust Section "Serving as a Referee Appointed by the Probate Court (April, 2002)
San Mateo County Bar Association, Estate Planning, Probate & Trust Section "The Traditional Family Values Elimination Act" (February, 2002)
Continuing Education of the Bar, "Estate Planning, Malpractice & Legal Ethics" (January, 2002)
Santa Cruz County Bar Association, Estate Planning, Probate & Trust Section "The Traditional Family Values Elimination Act" (December, 2001)
Santa Clara County Bar Association, Estate Planning, Probate & Trust Section "The Traditional Family Values Elimination Act" (December 2001)
Continuing Education of the Bar, "Antidotes for Estate Planning Scams, Botched Trusts, and Other Disasters" (July, 2001)
The State Bar of California, "A Mock Trial Program: Demonstration of a Disputed Will and Trust Matter" (June, 2001)
California Center for Judicial Education and Research, "Will Contests" (February, 2001)
Santa Cruz County Estate Planning Council, "Legislative Chads and Estate Tax Repeal: Down To The Count?" (December, 2000)
Santa Clara County Bar Association, Estate Planning, Probate & Trust Section, "Legislative Chads and Estate Tax Repeal: Down To The Count?" (December, 2000)
California Center for Judicial Education and Research, "Probate 201: Complex Litigation" and "Probate 101: Basic Contested Litigation" (February, 2000)
The Paralegal Association of Santa Clara County, Trusts and Estates Section, "Estate Planning and Administration Recent Developments - 2000" (February, 2000)
Santa Cruz County Estate Planning Council, "Vaccine for Millennium Bugs: New Laws in 2000" (January, 2000)
Santa Clara County Bar Association, Estate Planning, Probate & Trust Section, "Vaccine for Millennium Bugs: New Laws in 2000" (December, 1999)
Santa Clara County Bar Association, Estate Planning, Probate & Trust Section, "Guardians Ad Litem in Litigation" (June, 1999)
Eleventh Annual William F. Fratcher Trusts & Estates Symposium (University of Missouri-Columbia School of Law), "Antidotes for Estate Planning Scams and Botched Trusts and Other Disasters" (June, 1999)
The State Bar of California, Estate Planning, Trust and Probate Law Section, "A Mock Trial Program: Demonstration of a Disputed Will and Trust Matter" (May, 1999)
Professional Fiduciary Association of California, "Fiduciary Liability" (May, 1999)
Santa Clara County Bar Association, Estate Planning, Probate & Trust Section, " New Probate Laws: Tweaks and Twinges Before The Millennium" (December, 1998)
Continuing Education of the Bar, "Antidotes for Estate Planning Scams, Botched Trusts and Other Disasters" (November, 1998)
Ronald McDonald House at Stanford, "Advanced Estate Planning" (November, 1998)
Northern California Trust Companies Association, "Seventh Annual Educational Program" (October, 1998)
Contra Costa County Bar Association, "Anatomy of a Trial" (September, 1998)
Santa Clara County Bar Association, Estate Planning, Trust & Probate Section, "Provisional Remedies In Estate Proceedings" (July, 1998)
The Mid-Peninsula Trust Forum, Northern Trust Bank, "Anatomy of a Trust" (June, 1998)
State Bar of California, Fall Section Education Institute, "Evidentiary Issues That Should Be Considered During the Estate Planning Process" (October, 1997)
Santa Clara County Bar Association, Estate Planning, Probate & Trust Section, "Anatomy of a Trial" (September, 1997)
The Institute of Certified Financial Planners, "Professional Negligence In Estate Planning" (August, 1997)
Sonoma County Bar Probate Section and Redwood Empire Estate Planning Council, "The Estate Planner/Litigator's View: Emerging Patterns In Trust Litigation" (May, 1997)
National Business Institute, "California Probate: Beyond the Basics" (April, 1997)
California Center For Judicial Education, "Probate Litigation" (February, 1997)
State Bar of California, Continuing Education of the Bar, "The Guiding Hand: Ethical Issues in Estate Planning" (1996)
Santa Clara County Bar Association, Estate Planning, Probate & Trust Section, "Due Unto Others" (December, 1995)
CPA-Law Forum of San Francisco, "Professional Ethics and Liability in Estate Planning" (June, 1995)
State Bar of California, Section Education Institute, "Estate Planning and Probate" (June, 1995)
Financial Planning Forum, "Estate, Trust & Professional Liability Litigation
Anxiety Stories I Have Not Been Able to Forget" (April, 1995)
Santa Clara County Bar Association, "Estate Planning, Probate and Trust Law Update" (December, 1994)
Alameda County Bar Association, Estate Planning Trust and Probate Law Section, "Burch v. George - The No Contest Clause Re-Energized" (November, 1994)
Diablo Valley-Tri-Valley Estate Planning Council, "Estate Planning Practices That Lead to Litigation" (October, 1994)
State Bar of California, Continuing Education of the Bar, "Estates and Trusts: Dispute Resolution and Litigation" (June/July, 1994)
Santa Cruz County Estate Planning Council, "Estate Planning" (May, 1994)
Contra Costa County Bar Association and the Mechanics Bank, "The First Annual Contra Costa County Estate Planning Symposium" (March, 1994)
Santa Clara County Bar Association, "Estate Planning, Probate and Trust Law Update" (December, 1993)
Santa Clara County Bar Association, "References in Contested Estate Proceedings Under Code of Civil Procedure sections 639 and 639" (November, 1993)
State Bar of California, Estate Planning, Trust and Probate Law Section, "Recent Developments: Statutes, Cases and Taxation" (November, 1993)
National Business Institute, "California Elder Law: Taking Control of the Planning Process" (November, 1993)
Attorneys Probate Association, "Will Contests: Do's and Don'ts" (October, 1993)
Northern Trust Bank of California, "The Santa Clara County Trust Forum - Fiduciaries & Estate Litigation" (September, 1993)
National Business Institute, "A Practical Guide to Estate Administration in California" (August, 1993)
National Business Institute, "Planning Opportunities With Living Trusts in California" (February, 1993)
State Bar of California, Section Education Institute, "Ethical Issues in Estate Planning/Administration" (March, 1992)
Center for Judicial Education and Research, "Selected Programs in Decedent's Estates" (March, 1992)
State Bar of California, Continuing Education of the Bar, "Estate and Trusts: Dispute Resolution and Litigation" (September, 1991)
New York University School of Continuing Education, "Malpractice Issues in Estate Administration" (May, 1991).