Mr. Kipnis has over 35 years of experience representing corporate fiduciaries, financial institutions, broker-dealers and brokerage companies, as well as small businesses and individuals, in dispute resolution and litigation arising from banking, brokerage and probate and trust services. He has handled both the prosecution and defense of numerous claims in the federal and state courts throughout Southern California, including San Diego, Orange, Los Angeles, Imperial, San Bernardino, and Riverside Counties, as well as in FINRA (formerly NASD) and AAA arbitration hearings, arising out of a financial institution’s retail; brokerage; real estate, commercial and installment lending; fiduciary and trust; international; and escrow services. For over 15 years Mr. Kipnis has received Martindale- Hubbell’s highest peer-reviewed rating for professional excellence (“A-V Preeminent”).
Mr. Kipnis has represented clients to judgment (or award) in over 50 jury trials, bench trials, or arbitrations, and has successfully represented banks, institutional and familial fiduciaries and individuals in numerous appeals. He nonetheless encourages early evaluation of claims and resolution through use of less costly methods, such as through aggressive use of dispositive motions or alternative dispute resolution methods.
Mr. Kipnis has co-authored an attorney practice guide and, over the years, has been a featured speaker at several seminars and trade conferences, including state-wide CEB programs, on topics such as trust and probate administration and litigation practice, HIPAA, fiduciary and FINRA disputes, and claims resolution and avoidance. He has also testified as an expert witness in several cases involving issues arising from probate/trust litigation/administration, or banking and fiduciary services.
From 1984 to 1991, Mr. Kipnis practiced at Luce Forward Hamilton & Scripps in San Diego. Thereafter, until 1994, he served as Assistant General Counsel at San Diego Trust & Savings Bank, where he handled that bank’s litigation and claims portfolio, and was lead counsel for its Trusts & Estates Department.
Mr. Kipnis currently serves on the Trust and Estates Executive Committee of the California Lawyers Association (formerly the State Bar of California) (TEXCOM), where he serves as a member of TEXCOM’s Litigation and Ethics Subcommittees. He is also currently a managing editor of the California Trust and Estates Quarterly (the Official Publication of the Trust and Estates Section of the California Lawyers Association). Most recently Mr. Kipnis has chaired a TEXCOM subcommittee and co-authored an Amicus Brief filed on behalf of TEXCOM in the case of Barefoot v. Jennings (“Barefoot”), now pending before the California Supreme Court. The reported Court of Appeal opinion in Barefoot bars former trust beneficiaries from contesting trust instruments that resulted in their disinheritance in probate court.
Members of the California Lawyers Association Trusts & Estates Section discuss the Barefoot v. Jennings case and give Section updates for members.
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