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L Christopher Arvin
About L Christopher
Biography
I have a passion for assisting clients with their estate planning needs - their future and their families. I graduated from New York University School of Law - receiving an LL.M in Taxation. NYU is recognized by all as being the premier Law School for this program, world wide. My first case out of NYU with a very large law firm was handling the estate for one of the Firm's young female attorneys - her "estate planning" consisted of a 1 page holographic Will - while her very young children did receive their inheritance that was administered by the Trustee nominated who wonderfully cared for their financial needs, the large firm life insurance policy did not name the Trustee as the beneficiary, therefore the proceeds were wasted by the young mother/attorney's sister who was upset at the ex-husband, and wasted the entire large sum pursuing past-due alimony/child support that was not likely recoverable and ultimately was not, against the wishes of the Trustee and likely the young attorney. My objective over the following 25 years is to not let this type of non-intended consequence recur, by making Estate Planning both reasonable and accessible for my Clients - avoiding th subject being "put-off".
Outside of law my passions are Architecture, Design, Travel U.S. and world-wide with Family, Tennis, Boy-Scouts with my son, and assisting my children as much as I can educating them and assisting them for their future in our great country.
Practice Areas
2
Practice Areas
Estate Planning
70%
42 years | 2,500 cases
Probate
30%
42 years | 100 cases
Fees and Rates
Cost
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Chat withLicenses
Licensed in California for 42 years
State: California
Acquired: 1983
No misconduct found
Location
Law Office of Chris Arvin
15332 Antioch St., #457, Pacific Palisades, CA, 90272
Law Offices of L Christopher Arvin
6303 Owensmouth Avenue 10th Floor, Warner Center, Woodland Hills, CA, 91367
Law Offices of L Christopher Arvin
400 Continental Blvd./6th Floor, El Segundo, CA, 90245
Law Offices of L Christopher Arvin
17901 Von Karman Avenue, Ste 600, Irvine, CA, 92614
Law Offices of L Christopher Arvin
655 North Central Avenue, 17th Floor, Glendale, CA, 91203
Law Offices of L Christopher Arvin
2450 Colorado Avenue / Ste. 100E, Santa Monica, CA, 90404
Law Offices of L Christopher Arvin
5670 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 1800, Los Angeles, CA, 90036
Law Offices of L Christopher Arvin
609 Deep Valley Drive, Suite 200, Rolling Hills Estates, CA, 90274
Law Offices of L Christopher Arvin
2001 Addison St., Ste. 300, Berkeley, CA, 94704
Law Offices of L Christopher Arvin
5201 Great America Pkwy., Ste 320, Santa Clara, CA, 95054
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L Christopher Arvin's Reviews
Avvo Review Score
34 Client Reviews
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Showing 1 - 5 of 9 reviews | Responsiveness
Posted by Michael | January 27, 2025 | Hired Attorney | Trusts
USC Professor Biomedical Science Ostrow School of Medicine
Christopher Arvin completed a Trust for our family. As a result of the Palisades fires (Jan. 7, 2025), we lost our house and many documents including the Trust. Despite his own losses in the Palisades fires, Christopher immediately responded to our needs by retrieving the Trust. We are truly ...
Posted by Robert | February 21, 2013 | Estate Planning
Review of Christopher Arvin
Chris did an excellent job preparing our revocable trust and related documents. He was very accessible, explained things carefully, responded promptly to questions, and was extremely easy to work with. I would recommend him to all my colleagues at Pepperdine and suggest that they sign up for Hyatt le...
Posted by Felicia | February 19, 2013 | Estate Planning
Estate Planning
Chris was tremendous. I was prompted to create estate planning documents after the sudden death of my husband. Chris made the process easier than I anticipated. He was very knowledgeable about the rules and regulations and followed up with me even when I did not get back to him, which I needed to rem...
Posted by anonymous | January 18, 2013 | Estate Planning
Trust, Will, etc.
Mr. Arvin set up a living trust, will, durable power of attorney and advance health care directive, for me. He kept in contact throughout the process and completed the documents timely. Mr. Arvin is very approachable, pleasant, and always willing to answer questions. He even came to my work place,...
Posted by anonymous | February 01, 2012
L Christopher Arvin Review
Mr. Arvin was responsive to all our requests and explained whatever we didn't understand and gave us alternatives to consider with sound advice on all of them and did all this with a light touch and swift action. He really knows this area thoroughly and is aware of what is about to happen as well.
L Christopher Arvin's Lawyer Endorsements
"I endorse this lawyer."
"I endorse this lawyer. His answers and insight prove that he is able to offer clear and concise advice and to move his clients in the best direction based on his knowledge of the law."
"Top-notch attorney."
"I endorse this lawyer."
"I have had the great priviledge of getting to know Mr. Arvin in the Avvo community. Mr. Arvin has exhibited his breadth of knowledge in the area of estate planning. Estate planning is a complicated area of law that requires an expertise the Mr. Arvin clearly demostrates. His commitment to estate planning and helping those in need is clearly demonstrated in the answers he provides on Avvo. I am happy to have Mr. Arvin as part of my network of trusted attorneys. If you need an estate planning attorney in Los Angeles, call Mr. Arvin."
"I endorse Mr. Arvin. His many responses on this forum are, thoughtful, on-point and drive right to the heart of an individual's concerns. In an industry filled with attorneys that dabble in many areas of law, Mr. Arvin is a testament to his specialty, and I have no doubt that his focus benefits his clients immensely."
"Chris has been practicing for many years in the areas of estate planning and probate. His experience and down-to-earth approach communication style is aptly reflected in his excellent website - carvinlaw.com. Additionally, Chris continues to exhibit his common-sense approach to practicing law in his responses on avvo.com."
"I have read many of Mr. Arvin's answers to various estate and tax questions posed here at Avvo and his insight and practical perspective is excellent. As a fellow NYU graduate of the LLM program in taxation, I know the type of hard work and dedication needed to be successful to achieve success in such program. His enhanced tax background gives him superior tax knowledge over attorneys who have not gone through this program. I highly endorse this lawyer."
"I endorse this lawyer. Attorney Arvin is one of the finest estate planning attorneys in CA. He is a strong and zelous advocate for his clients and credit to the legal profession. I highly recommend his legal servcies."
"I am pleased to endorse Mr. Arvin. His clear and detailed counsel and advice are a great benefit to any client."
"I strongly endorse Mr. Arvin. Since I have been a subscriber to Avvo.com, I have had occasion to observe the responses Mr. Arvin has given to questions sent in by members of the public seeking advice on probate and trust matters. I am quite impressed with the analyses and opinions he has expressed. Although I have yet to work with Mr. Arivn, my observation is that he is a highly qualifed attorney in the trusts and estates arena, he has been in practice since 1983 and is a member of the California State Bar's Trusts & Estates Section. I have also visited Mr. Arvin's website and am very impressed with its content and the wealth of information it provides. I look forward to referring cases in the Los Angeles area to Mr. Arvin."
"I endorse this lawyer. Mr. Arvin is extremely knowledgeable in the area of estate planning and is my contact in California for such matters. I would not hesitate to contact him for advise or to refer clients who need legal assistance in California."
"I first met Mr. Arvin when we were opposing counsel on a contested probate matter. I found him to be knowledgeable, practical and honest. Working in conjunction with Mr. Arvin, we were able to resolve the matter in a fair and appropriate manner. Since then we have conferred many times about probate and estate planning cases. I always find his counsel to be thoughtful, accurate and pragmatic. I recommend Mr. Arvin to potential client and will continue to do so."
"I endorse this lawyer. We worked together on a collection matter and he greatly contributed to our case with his prior experience. He is open to discussion and is very responsive to inquiries."
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Experience
Associations
2009 - Present
Los Angeles County Bar Association, Trusts and Estates SectionMember
2009 - Present
State Bar of California, Trusts and Estates Section
2002 - Present
Los Angeles County Bar Lawyer Referral ServiceAttorney Referral Panel
2000 - Present
LA County BarMember
1984 - Present
State Bar of CaliforniaMember
Education
1984
New York University School of Law
LL.M - Master of Laws - Taxation
1982
Loyola Law School
JD - Juris Doctor
1979
University of Southern California
BS - Bachelor of Science
Speaking Engagements
2012
Bill Handel Law Day
Whittier Law School - Law Day
2011
Law Day
Whittier Law School - Bill Handel Law Day
2010
Law Day
Whittier Law School - Bill Handel Law Day
Activity
Legal Answers
Legal Answers
Q&A
What happens when someone who owes you money dies?
28 Feb 2012
Q&A
What does "non pro-rata distribution" mean? It is mentioned in my father's will as a power of the Personal Representative.
26 Feb 2012
Q&A
Which should be paid first by probate estate: "probate attorny and administrator" or creditors and may it paid propotionally?
24 Feb 2012