WKD is proud to support the California Professional Fiduciary Association, serving the needs of the most vulnerable people in our society. Partner Lauriann Wright is interviewed in the Professional Fiduciary Association’s 25^th Anniversary Documentary. Click HERE to view the documentary.

Lauriann Wright

Partner

Lauriann Wright, founding partner of WKD, is an experienced, award-winning probate litigator and estate planner located in Glendale, California. For over 25 years, she has been practicing all phases of probate law and litigation, including conservatorships, guardianships, trusts, and probate estates, predominantly in Los Angeles County. 

Ms. Wright has conducted numerous contested probate bench trials, dozens of depositions, and written and argued several probate appeals. She has successfully represented professional fiduciaries in numerous contested and protracted probate litigation proceedings including those involving high net worth trusts and estates.  Ms. Wright is experienced in skillfully and discreetly navigating the media in high-profile cases, working with public relations and crisis management professionals as needed. Some of her high-profile cases include the trusts for the benefit of Bradford Disney Lund (grandson to Walt and Lillian Disney), the Conservatorship of Britney Spears, the Conservatorship of Haddie Fishburne (mother of Laurence Fishburne), the trust for Nancy Dow (mother of John Melick and Jennifer Aniston), Conservatorship and Trust of Virginia Armstrong (mother (-in-law) to film producers Lani Netter and Gil Netter) and others. Ms. Wright also proudly represents the Anti-Defamation League in various trust and estate matters related to its charitable bequests.

Ms. Wright is consistently recognized by her peers as a leader in her field.  She has been named as a Southern California Super Lawyer in Trust and Estate Litigation for twelve consecutive years, from 2012 through 2023. In fact, for 2019 through 2023, she has been named as one of the Top 50 Women Super Lawyers in Southern California and, for 2020, 2022 and 2023, she made the list of Top 100 of all Super Lawyers in Southern California. For 2016 through 2023, she is also listed as one of "The Best Lawyers in America" in Litigation / Probate by Best Lawyers of U.S. News & World Report and her law firm has been named a Best Law Firm as well.  She was been named as a member of the National Advocates: Top 100 of Wills, Trust, and Estates Lawyers, among other honors. 

Four key qualities make Ms. Wright an effective advocate for her clients: (1) a keen understanding of probate law and procedure, garnering the respect of her fellow attorneys and bench officers; (2) thoroughness and attention to detail; (3) expansive litigation experience; and (4) social intelligence and understanding of the emotionally charged nature of probate disputes.

Mrs. Wright graduated from University of California, Hastings College of the Law in 1994 with her Juris Doctorate, including a semester of specialized coursework in international law completed at University of Leiden Law School, Leiden, the Netherlands. Mrs. Wright was admitted to the California Bar in December 1994 and is admitted to practice in all the California state and federal trial and appellate courts. 
 

Interviews:

Lauriann Wright interviews in the Professional Fiduciary Association’s 25th Anniversary Documentary, which can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PH_wYcQKGvI.    

 Memberships:                                                                                

• Affinity Group Leader, Pasadena Estate & Succession Planning Affinity Group, Provisors (awarded Affinity Group Leader of the Year, Los Angeles Region, 2019)
• Vice-President and Board Member, San Gabriel Valley Estate Planning Council
• Member:
          o San Gabriel Valley Estate Planning Council
          o Los Angeles County Bar, Trust & Estates Section
          o Pasadena Bar Association
          o Provisors, Pasadena III
   

Expert Witness:  

• Probate Litigation: How to Build and Present Your Case, Orange County Bar Association, Trust & Estates Section; Co-Speakers Hon. Kim R. Hubbard, Hon. Gerald G. Johnston, Alice A. Salvo;  October 15, 2014.
• Capturing the Queen: Pre-Trust Contest Litigation Strategies, Orange County Bar Association, Trust & Estates Section, April 8, 2015; and Estate Planning Council of San Fernando Valley, April 30, 2015.
• Savage Sunset: How 21380 Has Sharpened the Teeth of the Former 21350, San Fernando Bar Association, Trust & Estates Section; June 9, 2015.
• Probate Litigation: How to Build and Present Your Case, Los Angeles County Bar, Trust & Estates Section; September 25, 2015.
• Legislative Brunch, Woman's Forum, Push the Limits, National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors, Greater Foothills, Executive Panelist, Arcadia, CA; March 19, 2016.
• Justice Delayed: Conservatorships for Criminal Defendants and a Case Study on One that Went Awry, Professional Fiduciary Association of California, 21st Annual Educational Conference, Night Owl General Session, Indian Wells, CA; June 2, 2016.
• Capturing the Queen: Pre-Trust Contest Litigation Strategies, Professional Fiduciary Association of California, 21st Annual Educational Conference, Breakout Session, and Lunchtime Lecture, Indian Wells, CA; June 2 and 3, 2016.
• Outer Boundaries: The Perplexing Tale of Standing in Probate Court, Orange County Bar Association, Trust & Estates Section; March 8, 2017
• Fiduciary Neutrality: When to Join the Fight? The Ethics, Law, and Practice of Neutrality, Professional Fiduciary Association of California, 22nd Annual Educational Conference, General Session, with Co-Speakers Hon. David J. Cowan of the Los Angeles Superior Court, Yevgeny Belous, and Norine Boehmer; Burlingame, CA, June 3, 2017
• Hoops and Hurdles in Fiduciary Accountings, Wells Fargo Private Bank: Fiduciary Accountings, Panel Discussion, Co- Speakers with Stacy A. Kinsel, Wells Fargo Private Bank, Pasadena, CA,  on October 17, 2017
• Probate Litigation, Pincus Professional Education, DoubleTree by Hilton, Los Angeles Downtown, on November 10, 2017
• Fiduciary Boot Camp, Pincus Professional Education with Co-Speakers Hon. Maria E. Strattion and Norine Boehmer, DoubleTree by Hilton, Los Angeles Downtown, March 9, 2018
• Hoops and Hurdles in Fiduciary Accountings, 23rd Annual PFAC Educational Conference with Co-Speaker Stacy Kinsel; RIverside Convention Center, Riverside, CA, May 31. 2018
• Fiduciary Neutrality: When to Join the Fight. The Ethics, Law and Practice of Neutrality Part 2, 23rd Annual PFAC Educational Conference with Co-Speakers Hon. David J. Cown, Yevgeny Belous, and Norine Boehmer; Riverside Convention Center, Riverside, CA, June 2, 2018
• When to Join the Fight: Fiduciary Neutrality and Rules of Ethics, Glendale Estate Planning Council, with Co-Speaker David Kim; Tam O'Shanter, Los Angeles, CA, July 17, 2018
• Is the Backdoor Closed? Sanchez, Hearsay & Expert Witness Testimony in Will & Trust Contests, Los Angeles Bar Association, Trust and Estates Section, September Symposium, with Co-Speaker Hon. Maria E. Stratton of the Los Angeles Superior Court; Millennium Biltmore Hotel, Los Angeles, CA, September 21, 2018
• 2018 Aviva K. Bobb Advanced Probate Volunteer Panel Attorney Training, Los Angeles County Bar Association, Trust and Estates Section, "Working With Other Counsel", Sportsmen Lodge, Studio City, CA, November 3, 2018
• Trusts Bootcamp - The Basics, Pincus Professional Education, March 14, 2019
• How to Work with Attorneys in Contested Matters, Professional Fiduciary Association of California, 24th Annual Educational Conference, with Co-Speakers Judge James A. Steele (Ret.) and Yevgeny Belous, Esq.; Disneyland Magic Kingdom Ballroom #1, May 2, 2019
• Is the Backdoor Closed? Sanchez, Hearsay & Expert Witness Testimony in Will & Trust Contests, Orange County Bar's, Trust and Estate Section, with Co-Speaker Hon. Maria E. Stratton of the Los Angeles Superior Court; Orange Conference Center, Orange, CA, May 8, 2019
• Capturing the Queen: Pre-Trust Contest Litigation Strategies, Fiduciary Round Table, September 11, 2019.
• Pre-Litigation Mediation & Settlement, Pincus Probate Litigation 101, with Co-Speaker Hon. Mary Thornton House, Judge (Ret.), Los Angeles, CA, September 20, 2019.
• Trials and Evidence, Pincus Probate Litigation 101, with Co-Speaker Hon. Mary Thornton House, Judge (Ret.), Los Angeles, CA, September 20, 2019, and November 17, 2020.
• Capturing the Queen: Pre-Trust Contest Litigation Strategies, PFAC Regional Meeting, The Reef, Long Beach, CA, November 21, 2019.
• Where's the FUN in DysFUNctional Families: Interactive Case Studies, Professional Fiduciary Association of California, 25^th Annual Educational Conference, with Co-Speakers Hon. Judge Mary Thornton House (Ret.), Brenda Shorkend, and Robert Earnest, Hyatt Regency San Francisco, May 28, 2020, and multiple other venues thereafter.
• Trust and Estates 101: The Nuts and Bolts, Pincus Professional Education, Various Panels, March 3, 2022
• Fiduciary Accounting Challenges, Professional Fiduciary Association of California, 26^th Annual Educational Conference, with Co-Speaker Francine Lee of Ernst & Young, Disneyland Resort, Anaheim, May 6, 2022; also presented to the Orange County Bar Association’s Trust & Estate Section on June 8, 2022; PFAC Southern Region Education Day, November 3, 2022; to the 59^th Annual Hawaii Tax Institute, Waikiki, Hawaii, November 9, 2022; and to the Los Angeles Estate Planning Council, Los Angeles, CA, April 19, 2023.
• Supportive Decision Making, Beyond the Buzzword into a Construct for its Application in Probate Conservatorships, 28th Annual PFAC Educational Conference with Co-Speakers Dr. Sarah Mourra, UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine, Mary Winners, About Senior Solutions, Hyatt Regency Embarcadero Center, San Francisco, CA, June 1, 2023. 

• Tales from the Crypt:  Post-Death Issues Regarding Tangible Personal Property (Speaking with Joe Baratta and Bryan Kirk).  Hawaiian Tax Institute, Waikiki, HI, November 8, 2023 at 4:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.