Litigating Trust Contests

James G. Bohm | Bohm Wildish & Matsen, LLP

James Bohm has substantial trial experience in major cases including probate and trust litigation with respect to trusts involving hundreds of millions of dollars, contested conservatorship proceedings, and contested minor’s compromise matters involving tens of millions of dollars. He is also experienced in trial of civil matters including personal injury claims including catastrophic injury, products liability cases with exposure in the millions of dollars. Mr. Bohm has substantial experience in construction defect litigation and experience in both insurance law and business litigation representing fortune 500 companies.

Trial Experience

Mr. Bohm is a member of ABOTA and has a broad range of extensive trial experience in major cases lasting more than one month in actions involving probate, trust litigation bad faith/coverage litigation and business litigation including representing Fortune 500 companies. Verdicts and awards obtained on behalf of firm clients have included:

• Successfully represented Walt Disney’s grandson in replacing the trustee on two trusts with worth in the tens of millions of dollars after a hotly contested three-week trial in Los Angeles Superior Court
• Successfully tried a contested conservatorship proceeding in San Diego Superior Court
• Successfully tried a probate court matter resulting in an award to a former trustee of a trust in the amount of $500,000 a year for life
• Successfully defeated a guardian ad litem’s petition for approval of minors’ compromise in a multi-million-dollar settlement after a six day bench trial
• Obtained a complete defense verdict after a six- week jury trial wherein our client, the president of an automobile manufacturing company, was accused of fraud, conversion and securities violations by an investor in and creditor of the company. Plaintiffs sought over $12 million in damages and were represented by a nationally known trial lawyer who had never previously lost a case
• Successfully defended and obtained a $2 million attorney fee award for a Fortune 500 client following an extensive jury trial in Los Angeles Superior Court where claims of over $12 million were brought against that client relating to the divestiture of one of its subsidiaries
• Successfully defended a real estate agent where the agent was alleged to have breached her fiduciary duties in representing her own client by purchasing her client’s prospective property and obtaining a alleged secret profit there from, with no resulting liability to our client
• Successfully prosecuted an action, in a jury trial, against a real estate agent where the agent was alleged to have made a secret profit
• Obtained a fraud verdict against a publicly traded leasing company in favor of a major wholesale food distributor, in claims relating to the leasing company’s contract and selling practices. This was the first successful lawsuit in over 200 similar cases wherein a verdict against the leasing company was obtained. The leasing company was represented by one of the nation’s top law firms and spent over $5 million in attorney’s fees
• Successfully defended a company that was alleged to be a joint venture partner with a debtor company, in an action brought by the debtor company’s creditor, resulting in no liability to the client
• Obtained a jury verdict in excess of $300,000 for a property owner client whose property sustained water damage from an adjoining landowner
• Successfully prosecuted a jury trial matter for our client, an eye surgeon, against a national fumigation company relating to a burglary at her house during the fumigation process
• Successfully prosecuted a court trial matter for our client, a public corporation, against a former employee for fraud and conversion
• Settled a major personal injury lawsuit for $1,250,000 after obtaining a jury verdict for liability in a bifurcated trial in Orange County Superior Court
• Successfully prosecuted a jury trial matter for a Russian businessman in a breach of contract case against an Orange County based global corporation.

I. Grounds for a trust contest | 3:00pm – 3:20pm

II. Burden of proof and shifting of the burden of proof in certain cases | 3:20pm – 3:40pm

III. Navigating the no-contest clause | 3:40pm – 4:00pm

Break | 4:00pm – 4:10pm

IV. Expert witnesses | 4:10pm – 4:25pm

V. Issues for the trustee | 4:25pm – 4:40pm

1. The duty of impartiality
2. Attorney-client privilege
3. Issues regarding attorney’s fees