Prominent Group of Private Wealth Attorneys Rejoins Holland & Knight
May 1, 2008
LOS ANGELES – A prominent group of private wealth lawyers, led by nationally recognized trusts and estates partner Bruce Ross, has rejoined the Los Angeles office of Holland & Knight. In addition to Ross, the group, which had been at the Los Angeles office of Luce Forward, includes lawyers Sean Higgins, Linda Rottman, Vivian Lee Thoreen, Jonathan Park and Tony Yu.
"We are excited to return to Holland & Knight's private wealth team," said Ross. "Holland & Knight has one of the premier trusts and estates practice in the country. The firm's presence in major financial markets and its global reach are important to me and to our clients. Holland & Knight's national platform fits our practice and our clients' needs."
"The firm is delighted by the return of the Ross group," said Ed Koren, national practice group leader for the firm's Private Wealth Services Group. "Bruce's national practice and our platform complement each other so well. As a recognized national authority in dispute resolution and fiduciary litigation, Bruce's return enables us to continue to meaningfully grow in the important practice area of private wealth services."
"We are very pleased to have this venerable group of lawyers rejoin our Los Angeles office," said Jerry Levine, executive partner of the firm's Los Angeles office. "Their presence will provide the office with tremendous opportunities for growth and allow us to better serve our clients here on the West Coast."
Bruce Ross joins the firm as a partner. He is a nationally recognized trial lawyer with more than 30 years experience litigating trust, estate and conservatorship cases. He has appeared pro hac vice in several states to handle such litigation and has consulted on international succession cases in a number of countries, including Switzerland, Israel and Australia. He is a Certified Specialist in Estate Planning, Trust & Probate Law (California Board of Legal Specialization).
Ross is a Past President (2006-2007) of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC); an Academician in the International Academy of Estate and Trust Law; and the author of the definitive two-volume California Practice Guide: Probate (published in 1986 and supplemented annually), published by The Rutter Group, a division of Thomson West Publishing. For the last two years, he has been listed in Worth Magazine as one of the country's Top 100 Private Wealth Lawyers.
Sean Higgins joins the firm as a partner. His practice focuses on complex trust, estate and conservatorship litigation; trust and estate administration; and estate planning. He has been named a 2007 "Rising Star" by Southern California Super Lawyers Magazine; teaches Wills and Trusts as an adjunct professor at Chapman Law School in Orange, California; and has passed the Legal Specialization Examination for Probate and Trust Law, the principal step toward Legal Specialist certification by the California Board of Legal Specialization.
Linda Rottman joins the firm as senior counsel. She practices in the area of trust and estate litigation and is experienced in other complex litigation matters. She is listed in the Daily Journal's "2007 Top 100 Women Litigators in California" and "2007 Top 10 Verdicts (5th largest) in California."
Vivian Lee Thoreen joins the firm as an associate. She focuses her practice on complex trust, estate and conservatorship litigation and has substantial experience in guardianship matters. Thoreen has been named a 2007 "Rising Star" by Southern California Super Lawyers Magazine and is a member of the Board of Governors of the Southern California Korean American Bar Association. She is conversant in Korean.
Jonathan Park joins the firm as an associate. He works on all aspects of trust and estate litigation, including pre-litigation fact review, preparation of pleadings, document discovery, motion preparation and trial support. Park is a member of the Korean American Bar Association of Los Angeles. He is conversant in Korean.
Tony Yu joins the firm as an associate. He practices in the area of estate planning and litigation. Yu is a member of the Boards of Directors of both the Taiwanese Chamber of Commerce of Orange County and the Taiwanese American Lawyers Association. He is fluent in Mandarin and Taiwanese.
Contact: Susan Bass (813) 769-4326