Christopher D. Carico

Partner

Areas of Practice

  • Trust & Estate Litigation
  • Estate Planning
  • Trust Administration
  • Probate Administration

 

 

 

 

 

 

Christopher D. Carico is a board-certified specialist in estate planning, trust, and probate law with 35 years of legal experience. His practice includes all facets of trusts and estates, and he represents families, individuals, professional trustees, conservators, guardians, and beneficiaries.

Mr. Carico has a wealth of experience in both the estate tax planning and litigation components of trust and estate law. Because of this dual expertise, Mr. designs estate planning instruments that can stand up to the closest scrutiny, and he knows how to challenge others’ instruments from the ground level up.

Mr. Carico divides his time between: (1) representing beneficiaries and fiduciaries in dispute resolution, will and trust contests, , financial elder abuse actions, fiduciary surcharge, removal and accounting litigation,  and property characterization disputes; and (2) counseling clients on advanced estate planning techniques including family limited partnership, family limited liability companies, designated beneficiary trusts, qualified personal residence trusts, intentionally defective grantor trusts, and life insurance trusts.

Mr. Carico has frequently served as a court-appointed expert to provide his opinions and recommendations to the probate court in the following types of actions: trust reformation proceedings, fiduciary accountings, actions for breach of fiduciary duty, actions for fiduciary suspension and removal, fee petitions, and compromise of creditors’ claims.

Committed to helping individuals resolve trust and estate disputes as quickly and efficiently as possible, Mr. Carico volunteers time as a mediator on the various court-sponsored pro bono probate mediation panels, and is currently acting as a volunteer Probate Settlement Officer on Los Angeles County Superior Court’s Probate Settlement Conference Panel. Mr. Carico served from 2014 through 2018 on the Executive Committee for the Trust and Estate Section of the State Bar of California, now the statewide California Lawyers Association.

Mr. Carico graduated with a J.D. cum laude, from Loyola Law School in Los Angeles, where he was a member of the Order of the Coif. He obtained his B.A in economics from Occidental College.
His previous affiliations include Carico Johnson Toomey LLP (2008-2017), Carico Toomey & Associates LLP (2007-2008), Davis & Carico LLP (1996 – 2007), Law Offices of Christopher D. Carico (1990 – 1996), and Mullen & Henzell (1989 – 1990).

Awards & Certifications:

 

                      

Publications & Presentations:

  • Probate Court’s Power to Help Sufferers of Mental Illness:  Should Antipsychotic Medication Still be Taboo, Probate Attorneys of Pasadena Annual Symposium, December 4, 2020.
  • Removal of Fiduciaries and Accounting Litigation, Probate Litigation 101: The Nuts and Bolts, Part II, Online Webinar Series Pincus Professional Education, November 12, 2020.
  • Statutory Deadlines Probate Litigation 101:  The Nuts and Bolts, Part I, Online Webinar Series Pincus Professional Education, November 10, 2020.
  • The Initial Client/Family Interview: Detecting Potential Abuse and Undue Influence Before it Happens, California Lawyers Association, Second Annual Financial Elder Abuse Symposium, Los Angeles, California, March 29, 2019.
  • Estate Planning Tips to Avoid Financial Elder Abuse, Financial Elder Abuse Symposium, California Lawyers Association, April 20, 2018, Indian Wells, California
  • The Folstein Mini-Mental State Exam:  Just How Useful is it for Assessing Capacity, California Trusts & Estates Quarterly, Issue 1, Volume 24, 2018
  • Fiduciaries (And Others) Beware – An Over-Reaching Release May be Voidable, California Trusts & Estates Quarterly, Issue 4, Volume 21, 2015
  • Understanding the Remedies Available for Financial Elder Abuse, California State Bar, Thirty-Ninth Annual Fall Program, November 20, 2015
  • Understanding the Remedies Available for Financial Elder Abuse, California State Bar, 88th Annual Meeting, October 8-11, Anaheim California
  • Pre and Post Sale Planning for You, Your Company and Your Family, Conference for Business Owners: M&A Solutions for Privately Held Companies, sponsored by Bank of America/Merrill Lynch/U.S. Trust, April 29, 2015, Montage Hotel, Beverly Hills
  • Partnering with Estate Planning Counsel, Merrill Lynch, Wealth Structuring Institute, May 13, 2014, Omni Hotel, Los Angeles
  • Bringing Beneficiaries to the Mediation Table:  Drafting Enforceable Trust Provisions Requiring Mediation of Disputes During Post-Death Trust Administration, California Trusts & Estates Quarterly, Issue 2, Volume 20, 2014
  • Trust Your Dog: Estate Planning for Pets in California, Los Angeles Daily Journal, August 8, 2012
  • Use of Psychotropic Medicines in Probate Conservatorships, Los Angeles County Bar Association, Aviva K. Bobb Advanced Probate Volunteer Panel Attorney Training Symposium, October 22, 2011
  • Escaping the LPS Revolving Door, California Trusts & Estates Quarterly, Issue 1, Volume 16, 2010
  • CPA as Client Trustee:  Is the Compensation Worth the Liability? WebCPA,July 28, 2009
  • Satisfying the UPIA through Professional Investment Advice and the Creation of the Investment Policy Statement, California Trusts & Estates Quarterly, Issue 4, Volume 13, 2008
  • Overview of Financial Elder Abuse:  Online Webinar; 4th Annual Financial Elder Abuse Symposium, California Lawyer’s Association. May 20, 2022
  • Funding Trusts; Trusts and Estates 101:  The Nuts and Bolts, Part 2, Online Webinar Series Pincus Professional Education, March 3, 2022
  • Powers of Attorney; Trusts and Estates 101:  The Nuts and Bolts, Part 2, Online Webinar Series Pincus Professional Education, March 3, 2022

 

 

 

 

 

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