I’m Mike Hackard with Hackard Law. We litigate California estate and trust disputes. More often than not, the asset in question is a house. Other common assets are bank accounts and securities. It’s our job to keep up with the law and with changing trends. The ownership of crypto-assets is a changing trend. Crypto-assets are going mainstream. Gemini, a cryptocurrency exchange, estimates that 14% of American adults, roughly 21 million people, own cryptocurrency. This ownership rate is moving upward. The asset-management industry is working to cash in on cryptocurrencies by launching new products. While progress is slow, there is progress. Cryptocurrency ownership will become more widespread. This will be a challenge for th[...]

I’m Mike Hackard with Hackard Law. I lead a California law firm representing trust beneficiaries and victims of catastrophic injury. My own life experience helps me identify with those who face a crisis. Three decades ago, doctors diagnosed me with a brain tumor. It was a challenge I faced along with my wife and children, and we overcame it thanks to our faith. Back in the early 1990s, there wasn’t an app to share your health journey those close to you, and of course there weren’t any smartphones, either. But now, we have CaringBridge. CaringBridge is a free online tool that enables you to share health updates with family and friends and schedule care – all from one place to keep it simple while you’re focused on treatmen[...]

I’m Mike Hackard from Hackard Law. We’re known for vigorously prosecuting California estate, trust, and financial elder abuse litigation. It’s not all that we do. We often represent underdogs in cases that others might not bring. Victims of childhood sexual assault claims are surely the underdogs. Their voices have often been silenced and their rights ignored. Some changes in California law have expanded the timeline in which these cases can be brought. We’re civilly prosecuting several of these childhood sexual assault cases – cases in which the abuse occurred even decades ago. These aren’t trivial matters. And, from society’s perspective, there are far too many of them. Too many innocent people who’ve endured suff[...]

I’m Mike Hackard of Hackard Law. I’m the “gray hair” of our law firm. Proverbs says that “The glory of young men is their strength, but the splendor of old men is their gray hair.” I like that. It’s good to have some splendor to go with the gray hair. It’s also good to have strength that goes with our younger lawyers. Brian Geremia, Sarah Cullen, Dave Jones, and Heath Langle certainly provide that. I like stories. That’s pretty clear from our YouTube channel. There are a lot of stories in our videos. This is another. A little different. Inspired by music. I like all kinds of music. As a part of this we’ve been giving away a new guitar every few months to one of our subscribers in a giveaway contest. This is a pl[...]

This week, Sacramento’s ABC 10 (KXTV) launches an original five-part series on abuses within California’s conservatorship industry. Investigative reporter Andie Judson will go in-depth to cover serious regulatory issues and suspected cases of elder financial exploitation by bad conservators. Hackard Law’s Michael Hackard was interviewed for this series and provided his knowledge and experience in representing elderly clients and their families against fiduciaries who have violated their professional duties and state law. Below you can find the text and trailer for ABC 10’s upcoming series:           COMING SOON: The Price of Care: Investigating California Conservatorships COMING SOON | Many have heard of conservato[...]

I’m Mike Hackard of Hackard Law. I’ve recently recommended the excellent Netflix movie, I Care A Lot. The movie is, in one sense, two films. The first – a story of betrayal. It starts with a court appointed conservator’s knock on a wealthy woman’s door. The woman, an elder, opens the door to what turns out to be a licensed predator. A scheme unfolds, stage by stage, calculated and timed, that takes the elder’s freedom and money from her. She is soon far removed from the protection of law and justice. The second part of the story evolves into a dark comedy. The film explores the murky side of the for-profit guardianship/conservatorship industry. A significant number of American families have suffered from the industry’[...]

California trust, estate & catastrophic injury litigation shifted dramatically in March 2020. Standard approaches to disputed case resolutions are put to the test. Trial dates settle cases. Covid impacts trial dates. Judges suspend, postpone, and defer 2020 trial dates into 2021. 2021 trial dates are now problematical. Our clients depend on us to advance their cases. We accept the challenge. When litigators are not in trial, they should be training for trial. The ultimate goal of trial training is to win cases. Continued training is a commitment to excellence. Continued training makes our adversary system of justice work. Continued training benefits our clients. New and existing clients deserve to kno[...]

He was a war hero, an assistant district attorney, a public defender and later a judge. He was also politically incorrect – far before there was a name for it. I first met the “judge” when I was 17. I was working at the local gas station pumping gas, cleaning windows and checking oil. In those days it was illegal for motorists to pump their own gas. The effects of this law were to provide unskilled jobs for high school kids at $1.05 an hour – a time when the cost of a first-class stamp was a nickel. The judge’s visits to the gas station would put a smile on our faces. He always had a story, asked us questions and listened to our answers. He was unlike most customers – even courteous customers – he showed humor and had[...]