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 9 reviews | Wills & Living Wills

Posted by Terry | February 05, 2026 | Hired Attorney | Wills & Living Wills

Needing a Will

My wife and I had put off making a will forever. Finally decided we better do so. We were apprehensive about how to do so. Contacted Mr. Fordham and he walk us through the process. Helped us to see exactly what we needed to fit our situation. He took time to talk to us and to answer any of the questi...ons we had. He made us feel very comfortable through the process.

Posted by anonymous | April 16, 2025 | Hired Attorney | Wills & Living Wills

dont waste your time on anyone else. dont take the chance. you wont be left adrift.

after the death of my life partner of many decades i was devastated and put my trust in frist one person and than another attorney over a period of nearly two years who assured me that they could bring my will and probate to completion. the whole time was a litany of broken promises, appointments no...t kept, shoddy work, and a situation that left me totally hopeless and adrift. i had virtually totally given up that this would ever be resolved and to put it quite bluntly, i was shattered and had lost most if not all of my trust in anyone. enter mister fordham. the process from then on changed completely. within several weeks i started feeling like oh, so this is how this is supposed to be done. calls were kept. calls were sent to me by mister fordham on anything and everything that i needed to know or do during the whole process. mister fordham to put it in a few words saved my life. that is how i felt after what i had previously been through. dennis you can trust implicitly always.

Posted by Suzanne | March 05, 2024 | Hired Attorney | Wills & Living Wills

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 Gerald | August 02, 2023 | Hired Attorney | Wills & Living Wills

Review of Dennis A. W. Fordham

My wife and I had Dennis Fordham handle our Living Trust and estate planning. He was very thorough, and we were pleased with his work. Dennis was friendly and professional in all aspects of this process. He explained complex issues in understandable terms. During the course of our co...nsultations, an unexpected issue arose. Dennis gave us several options on how to handle the issue, and helped us navigate our decision to a satisfying conclusion. In addition to the trust, he updated our wills, created powers of attorney for us both, and completed advanced health care directives for medical purposes. We highly recommend Dennis Fordham for any of these matters.

Posted by Mark | October 29, 2021 | Hired Attorney | Wills & Living Wills

Professional start to finish.....

I'm 68 and live in Northern California. My kids are on the other end of the continent in New Hampshire. Things like distance ,multiple properties, feelings etc. can make a will and trust more complicated. Dennis really listened to me explain my situation, hence in the end things were pretty much th...e way I wanted. He's very good at what he does.

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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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Avvo Rating Levels
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