Dennis A W Fordham

Dennis A W Fordham

5.0
Rating: 8.7

Licensed for 34 years

Estate planning Lawyer at Lakeport, CA
Practice Areas: Estate Planning, Trusts, Probate

870 South Main Street, Lakeport, CA

About Dennis

Biography

Practice Areas

3

Practice Areas

Estate Planning 50%

Drafting Wills and Trusts.

22 years | 700 cases

50%
Trusts 30%

Trust Administration upon death or incapacity of settlor who established the trust.

22 years | 40 cases

30%
Probate 20%

Court supervised administration of a deceased person's probate estate, It can either be testate (with a will) or intestate (without a will).

22 years | 20 cases

20%

Fees and Rates

Cost

Retainer

Always


Payment Methods

  • Cash
  • Check

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Licenses

Licensed in California for 22 years

State: California

Acquired: 2003

Active

No misconduct found

Licensed in New York for 34 years

State: New York

Acquired: 1992

Due to Reregister within 30 days of Birthday

No misconduct found

Location

Law Office of Dennis A Fordham

870 South Main Street, Lakeport, CA, 95453

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Dennis A W Fordham's Reviews

Avvo Review Score

5.0 /5.0

53 Client Reviews

Filter Avvo Reviews (53) Refine reviews to match your needs. Use the filters to quickly surface reviews that align with your case or priorities.

Showing 1 - 5 of 33 reviews | Estate Planning

Posted by William | January 28, 2025 | Hired Attorney | Estate Planning

Excellent living Trust lawyer

Dennis Fordham has been and excellent trust lawyer for my wife and myself. I had always read his articles in the Lake County Record Bee that were so informational and in 2016 we decided to contact him and set up a living trust for our family. We couldn't have made a better choice. His advice and exp...ert knowledge of our particular situation with our property and business and family succession was absolutely professional. My wife had dementia and Dennis was instrumental in laying out my necessary changes in the trust after her passing last year. In my opinion he is a very knowledgeable, caring and honest living trust attorney with outstanding trust knowledge and has helped me during the hardest time in my life. I recommend him highly if you are looking for a law attorney that can set up a living trust for your family. Also I would say his fee's are very reasonable compared to other law practices.

Posted by Bob Morrison | September 10, 2024 | Hired Attorney | Estate Planning

Truly A Blessing

If you’re searching for an intelligent and honest attorney; look no further. After my mother’s passing, my wife and I wasted a lot of money with two big city attorneys trying to settle my mother’s estate, due to an issue with her Living Trust. After 2 years of frustration, I finally found Dennis Ford...ham. He solved and corrected the problem within 6 months for a very reasonable price. My wife and I were so pleased with Mr. Fordham’s professionalism, that we are now collecting our financials together, so that he can set up a Living Trust for us (problem free for our children)! - Bob Morrison

Posted by Lynn | March 07, 2024 | Hired Attorney | Estate Planning

Family Trust

My children are now protected by having our family trust planned out according to my wishes. Thanks to Mr. Fordham and his staff for attention to detail, as well as the knowledge to the procedures to administer a trust.

Posted by Suzanne | March 05, 2024 | Hired Attorney | Estate Planning

Lakeport CA Wills &Trusts

Dennis knows Wills and Trust law at the highest level. He has seen me through many life changes including the death of my husband and all the legal twists and turns that followed. He is smart, and kind. He is efficient and pays attention to the details. I highly value his advice and trust hi...s counsel. He is honest, hard working and bills very fairly. If you are looking for a will and trust attorney this guy is top notch.

Posted by Chris | February 29, 2024 | Hired Attorney | Estate Planning

Excellent service - Help needed with late father's trust

When my late Father passed away I didn't know what to do. Luckily for me my Dad did do a few important things when he was alive. He did a will but most importantly a trust. This was helpful but I learned after he died that you need an Attorney that deals with estates & probate to properly navigate... you to the end. Unfortunately the Attorney that prepared my fathers will and trust had died. I did not have to deal with probate but without Dennis' help I would have made critical mistakes. You can't just Google your way around this stuff. Get Dennis to get have it done correctly and legally. He is whip smart, fair, and thorough. He has a unique stoic professional demeanor so don't be put off by that. My personality is the polar opposite of his. At first I was caught off guard by this. Dennis means business and he is not there to chit chat and waste his, or more importantly, your time. Your will pay for every minute of his time but it is money well spent. Also since he is a stickler on billing his time, this will work to your advantage also. I received a substantial refund from my original retainer because of this efficiency. I was very pleased with Dennis and I would not hesitate to recommend him to anyone.

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Dennis A W Fordham's Lawyer Endorsements

Endorse Dennis
Kevin Thomas O'Connor headshot
Kevin O'Connor

Estate planning lawyer | Nov 14

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I endorse this lawyer. Dennis is super knowledgeable and has a very accessible and personable way of sharing information."

Jeffrey David Markham headshot
Jeffrey Markham

Estate planning lawyer | Mar 25

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I endorse this lawyer's work."

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Experience

Rating:  8.7 (Excellent)

Honors

2009

Specialization - Estate Planning, Probate & Trust Law, California State Bar

Work Experience

2004 - Present

Attorney, Law Office of Dennis A. Fordham

1994 - 2002

Senior Attorney, New York State Department of Taxation - Office of Counsel

Associations

2010 - Present

Lake County Law Library

Trustee

2006 - Present

Redwood Empire Estate Planning Council

Member

1996 - Present

Lakeport Rotary

Member

Education

1994

New York University School of Law

LL.M - Master of Laws (Taxation)

1991

State University of New York at Buffalo School of Law

J.D.

1988

Columbia Univ

History

Speaking Engagements

2016

Lake County Bar Association

Revocable Transfer on Death Deed

2010

Speaker's Panel

Financial Elder Abuse

Publications

2010

California State Bar Trusts and Estates Quarterly Using Private Retirement Plans to Protect your Assets from Creditors
Avvo Rating

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