Vol. XXVII Issue XXIX O June 2005

Res IIpsa LLoquiturThe Official Publication of the Kern County Bar Association

THE HONORABLE GARY T. FRIEDMAN,KERN COUNTY SUPERIOR COURT,

RECEIVES 2005 BENCH & BAR AWARDBy Brenda A. Enderle

The Kern County Bar Association's list of past Bench & BarAward recipients represents the best and the brightest in

the Kern County legal community, both past and present. OnThursday, May 5, 2005, members of the legal community anddistinguished guests gathered at the Petroleum Club as theKCBA added yet another distinguished name to that list: theHonorable Gary T. Friedman of the Kern County SuperiorCourt.

Bench & Bar Award Program Chair Susan Gill and KCBAPresident Thomas Clark emceed the event. The HonorableLouis Etcheverry, Judge Friedman's cousin, gave the invoca-tion. Mayor Harvey Hall declared May 5, 2005, as Gary T.Friedman Day in Bakersfield for Friedman's many contribu-tions to the community and to the legal profession. State Barof California President John Van de Kamp traveled toBakersfield to congratulate Judge Friedman and provideremarks on the state of the legal profession.

Stephen Clifford of Clifford & Brown, the 1998 Bench and BarAward Recipient, warmly introduced Judge Friedman, a friendwhom Clifford has known for many years. Clifford regaled theaudience with anecdotes about Friedman, including his

upbeat personality, his love of food and his tendency to offer aDiet Pepsi to guests in his chambers.

Friedman is known for his gracious and courteous treatmentof everyone who enters his courtroom. He also is known forhis settlement conferences, which Clifford noted thatFriedman conducts "with the skill borne of a good, deepunderstanding of people and how they operate. Knowing peo-ple is Gary's strong suit."

"Judge Friedman is dedicated to the furtherance of justicedelivered in the most human and personal but effective andefficient way," Clifford said.

Born in Bakersfield, Judge Friedman graduated from GarcesMemorial High School, Bakersfield College, the University ofCalifornia, Santa Barbara, and the University of California,Berkeley, Boalt Hall School of Law.

Judge Friedman began his legal career in Bakersfield as aDeputy District Attorney and Special Prosecutor for the KernCounty District Attorney.

From 1969-1982, Judge Friedman was a member of the firm ofKing, Eyherabide, Anspach, Friedman, Robinson & Pearl.Prior to his elevation to the bench, he was a member of thefirm DiGiorgio, Davis, Klein, Wegis, Duggan & Friedman andalso served as a part-time U.S. Magistrate for the U.S. DistrictCourt, Eastern District of California.

Bench and Bar Award continued on Page 8

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PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

Judicial Independenceby Thomas S. Clark

For those of you who missed ourBench and Bar/Law Day dinner,

we were honored by the presence ofState Bar President John Van deKamp. Mr. Van de Kamp discussedissues of judicial independence andmentioned the recall campaignagainst Sacramento County SuperiorCourt Judge Loren McMaster. A spe-

cial interest group [see www.judgerecall.com] has targetedJudge McMaster for recall because he declined to hold thatthe Domestic Partnership Act was unconstitutional-a deci-sion that was upheld by the Court of Appeal, ThirdAppellate District [Docket # C048378, filed April 4, 2005].

The number of political attacks against judges is increasing.As recognized by the drafters of our Constitution, our judi-ciary is too important to be abandoned to momentary polit-ical whims.

Individuals have always had the right to criticize the judici-ary, finding fault with various decisions and orders withwhich they disagree. We are now seeing something differ-ent-judges responsible for considering difficult legal issuessubjected to criticism and pressure from special interestgroups who criticize the results of the decisions rather thanthe legal reasoning.

Judges are increasingly being held up as scapegoats oversome of the hot-button social issues of our time, such assame-sex marriage, the Pledge of Allegiance, flag desecra-tion, tort reform, etc.

Some of these critics know better. The public is rarely toldthe truth-courts can only consider matters properly present-ed to them; they decide issues after careful consideration ofthe legal principles and precedents involved; they often pres-ent written, carefully reasoned rulings; and there are appel-late courts reviewing their decisions.

As a result of the attacks by ill-informed critics and specialinterest groups, there is a real danger that larger numbers ofthe public are becoming cynical about the fairness and equi-ty of our courts.

In contrast to many of the nations of the world, we are a

President’s message continued on page 3

IN THIS ISSUE

1

The Honorable Gary T. Friedman, Kern County Superior Court,Receives 2005 Bench & Bar Award

By Brenda A. Enderle

3Etcheverry Appointed Judge

By Christopher Hine

5The View From The Watershed

By Jay Smith

Solo CornerBy Gabriole Zeviar-Geese

10Leadership Bakersfield Honors Long-Term Care Ombudsman

Volunteers-GLBABy Mary McCabe

11HISTORY COLUMN

By Susan Gill

13An Appealing MCLEBy Jennifer Thurston

14The Probate ReportBy Susan Salvucci

15Mentoring Organization Founded by Attorneys Adopts New Name

By Susan Peninger, Program Director, VIP Kern

Volunteer Attorney Program of Kern County (VAP)By Jill Platt

17From the Circular Fi le

B y F. Lee Smedley, Legal Affairs Correspondent

Advocatus CaecusBy C.M. (Bud) Starr II

18

Judge Anspach Appoints A CASA Volunteer To The1000th Kern County Child

By Maggie Cushine

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

JUNE - 18 MCLE - Substance Abuse

JULY - 23 Criminal Defense Section Summer Social

AUGUST - 17 MCLE - Ethics Hotline

SEPTEMBER8 - Bar Leaders' Conference8-10 - California Bar Association Annual Meeting San Diego

OCTOBER 1818 Judicial Appreciation29 MCLE Spooktacular - Cal State Bakersfield

Kern County Association O 1675 Chester Avenue Suite 220 O Bakersfield,CA 93301 O (661) 334-4700 Fax (661) 334-4701 info@kernbar.org O

www.kernbar.org

3

President’s message continued from page 2

nation of laws. Other countries are astounded to see thatadherence to law and legal principles can lead to the resig-nation of a powerful President (in the Watergate scandal)or can lead to the peaceful transition of power to a newpresident who received less popular votes than his oppo-nent. Mr. Van de Kamp pointed out that a Bush vs. Gorecourt decision in many other civilized countries wouldresult in riots, attempted revolution, and widespread dis-obedience to the court's orders by numerous supporters ofthe adversely affected candidate.

Political pressure on judges undermines the public confidencein our judicial system (without which the system cannot longbe effective), jeopardizes the court's role as a neutral forum toresolve disputes, and undermines the system of "checks andbalances" set forth in our Constitution.O

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ETCHEVERRY APPOINTED JUDGEBy Christopher Hine

Louis P. Etcheverry, has beenappointed Kern County's

newest Judge by GovernorSchwarzenegger. Judge Etcheverryhad previously served as a CourtCommissioner after being selectedby the Kern County Superior Courtjudges in 2002.

Prior to being selected as Commissioner, Judge Etcheverrypracticed law in the Bakersfield area after being admitted tothe California Bar in December 1974. He practiced bothcivil and criminal law in state and federal court. JudgeEtcheverry also acted as an Arbitrator and DiscoveryReferee for Kern County Superior Court and served as aJudge Pro Tem for the Family Law Department from 1979through 1984. In addition, Judge Etcheverry served as apart-time U. S. Magistrate Judge from 1984 until he wasselected as a Commissioner.

Judge Etcheverry was born in Bakersfield and attended localgrammar schools and Garces Memorial High School. Heserved 10 years in the United States Marine Corps as an avi-ator and was honorably discharged with the rank of Major.He received his Bachelor's Degree in BusinessAdministration at St. Mary's College in Moraga, Californiaand his law degree from the University of Idaho.

Etcheverry continued on page 10

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THE VIEW FROM THE WATERSHEDBy Jay C. Smith

He was born with a gift of laughter and a sense that the worldwas mad “Scaramouche” by Rafael Sabatini

"Doing what's right in the only game in town."

L ast month I wanted to discuss aserious topic, the responsibility

of lawyers to speak up to defendjudges and the system becausejudges are so limited in the ethicalresponses available to them thatthey can't do an effective job ofdefending themselves. I was con-cerned about things like the uproar

over the Schaivo case, in which the state court triallevel judge was a Republican and a Southern Baptist,but whose decision was so unpopular he neededbodyguards and received a letter from the pastor ofhis church asking him to go to some other church.The most powerful politician in the House made aspeech that said judges were gonna get what they hadcoming someday. Eeek.

Fortunately for me, Tom Clark did an excellent job ofdiscussing the issue in his Presidents' column. I rec-ommend that you dig out last month's Res Ipsa andre-read what Tom had to say, and take his advice.

I make this suggestion with some trepidation. First,if you re-read Tom Clark's column you may noticethat the editorial board (which includes moi) let in atypo that scrambled several of Tom's lines of prose.Obviously, I stand to lose if the topic of incoherencein Res Ipsa columns comes up because the incoher-ence in mine is nobody's fault but my own.

Next, candidly, it goes against the grain for me todefend judges. I think I am like many lawyers: evenif the judge in our case rules completely in our favorwe are vaguely unhappy that the judge didn't have thegumption to find a way to give us more than we askedfor.

I had a frustrating Con Law professor. He tried tomake you think. As you may recall, all you reallywant to learn in Con Law is what you need to pass thebar exam, and that works out ok, since in the trench-es, your need for knowledge about the subject is lim-ited to knowing the buzz words and three part teststhe trial court is likely to apply. Equal protection,due process, the Lemon Test, etc. etc. The philosophyand history of the Constitution might be useful if wewere in the justice business, but we are in the lawbusiness, where such things are distracting.

One thing my Con law prof said did stick with me,though. He asserted that he was willing to argue thatevery single decision the U.S. Supreme Court hadmade was wrong, but if he had to admit that the deci-sion was right, he would be able to show that the rea-soning that lead to the correct decisions was wrong. Ithought he was trying to provoke us into thinking(the cur) and that he was being silly. As time went byI thought there was some truth to the assertion; andnow I think it is so obviously true that it is almosttrivial.

Still, the system we've got is the system we've got. Asthe man said when confronted by the fact that thepoker game he attended in his small town was rigged,"Well, sure the game is crooked…but it's the onlygame in town."

So Tom was right, no matter how uncomfortable itmakes me. I guess this is another situation wheresomething Mark Twain said is the best comment I canshare: "Always do what is right. It will gratify yourfriends and astonish your enemies." O

SOLO CORNERBy: Gabriole Zeviar-Geese

T hey slither, creep, crawl, bounce,and leap into the human heart.

Man's best friend and a variety ofcritters often play a very importantrole in people's lives. Because of thisinterdependency, there is an emerg-ing body of law protecting our"younger" brothers that addresses

their rights in relation to their role in human life andsociety. "Society has come to view the bond betweenhumans and companion animals as something thatmust be protected," said Rich Avanzino a lawyer andhead of the San Francisco Society for the Preventionof Cruelty to Animals.

Divorce disputes can broaden into custody fights overwho gets the dog, the cat, or the frog. It is not unusu-al for parties to spend thousands of dollars in attor-ney fees fighting for custody of a family pet. BeforeMichael Douglas married Catherine Zeta-Jones hemade an agreement with his ex-wife regarding theirpet ocelot. Couples should consider prenuptial agree-ments including ownership, custody and visitationrights to the pet. Judges who used to view pets aschattels are increasingly applying "what will be bestfor the animal?" standard in their decisions of who gets

Solo Corner continued on page 6

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the pet. In San Diego, a couple underwent a "bonding" study to determine who would get their pointer-Greyhound cross, Gigi. The court awarded temporary cus-tody to the wife and weekend visitation to the husband.The crux of the matter is that if it makes sense to preventcruelty to animals in criminal law then considering theneeds of a pet in divorce in civil law has its place as wellbecause the decision there can affect the pet for the rest ofits life.

Landlord-tenant law can be affected by the broadening def-inition of a service dog. Animals are being trained to assistpeople to deal with and recover from a variety of mentaland physical illnesses such as epilepsy, stroke, and depres-sion. Dogs are no longer just guide dogs and hearing dogs.Charlotte, the pig, is a companion animal who assists herowner suffering from a heart condition to relieve her stress.Hannah, the Pekinese, helps her owner deal with post-can-cer depression. The federal Fair Housing Act and a varietyof state and local civil rights laws contain definitions aboutwho is protected and allowed to have pets or service ani-mals in housing that has a "no pets" policy.

Federal law guarantees protection for all service animalswhether or not they are certified. Businesses are forbiddenfrom asking an animal owner for proof of certification.

The emotional reaction to this subject matter runs thegamut from a "Bill of Rights for Grieving Animal Lovers,"to the Pet's Bill of Rights posted on a website owned andoperated by practicing veterinarians, to a piece addressingthe issue of "pet guardians" versus "pet owners," to lawschool students forming chapters interested in animal law,to a conference this past November held at Yale Law Schooladdressing the future of animal law.

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Bench and Bar continued from page 1

Former Governor George Deukmejian appointed JudgeFriedman to the Kern County Superior Court bench in1983, where in 1986 he served as Presiding Judge of theSuperior Court and in 1995 presided over the JuvenileCourt.

He accepted the 2005 Bench & Bar Award on behalf of theentire Superior Court team, all of whom "enable benchofficers to deliver justice fresh daily." Judge Friedmanintroduced and recognized his courtroom staff. He alsoproudly introduced his family, including his wife of over 30years, Dr. Gloria Friedman, Senior Associate AthleticDirector and Professor in the School of Physical Educationand Kinesiology at California State University, Bakersfield;his daughter Lori, a fourth grade teacher in Menlo Park;and, his son Gary Jr., a senior at California State University,Fresno. Judge Friedman also introduced various othermembers of his Basque family in attendance.

Judge Friedman is active in many community organiza-tions, including the Boy Scouts of America, the SouthernSierra Council and the Minority Outreach Committee ofScoutreach. He also serves as a member of the California

State University, Bakersfield, School of Business and PublicAdministration Executive Advisory Council, theBakersfield College Foundation Board of Directors and theRotary Club of Bakersfield. Judge Friedman also is a PastPresident of the KCBA.

The Honorable Gary T. Friedman is a fitting addition to theKCBA's distinguished Bench & Bar Award recipient list, indeed.O

Brenda A. Enderle is an Associate at Clifford & Brown

9

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GREATER BAKERSFIELD LEGAL ASSISTANCE, INC.(GBLA)

Leadership Bakersfield Honors Long-Term CareOmbudsman Volunteers

WWW.GBLA.ORG

By Mary McCabe, Director of Development

Leadership Bakersfield Team 2, a programof the Greater Bakersfield Chamber of

Commerce, chose as their culminating projectto recognize the dedicated volunteers ofGBLA's Kern County Long-Term CareOmbudsman Program. LeadershipBakersfield Team 2, who dubbed themselves"Ombies", recognized approximately 26

Ombudsman Volunteers at a formal dinner held at the BakersfieldPetroleum Club on May 3, 2005.

In addition to the recognition and recruitment dinner, theOmbudsman Volunteers were presented with proclamationsfrom the offices of Assembly Member Kevin McCarthy andAssembly Member Nicole Parra. Joe Rodriguez, Director ofthe California State Long-Term Care Ombudsman Office,served as a moving keynote speaker. Rodriguez spoke very elo-quently about the important and meaningful work of theOmbudsman Program and its Volunteers. The "Ombies" alsodonated a much needed laptop computer to the Program.

The primary purpose of GBLA's Kern County Long-TermCare Ombudsman Program is to increase the quality of lifeand care for the nearly 4000 elderly who reside in long-termcare and skilled nursing facilities throughout Kern County.The Ombudsman staff and volunteers work to 1) receive(respond to complaints, problems or concerns made by or onbehalf of residents); 2) investigate (help identify/monitorproblems in the facility); and 3) resolve complaints (worktowards their resolution). Many elderly residents are "unbe-friended" and have no family members or friends to be theireyes, ears, and voice. Often, the Ombudsman is the only linkresidents have to the outside world. In 2004, OmbudsmanVolunteers gave 2,863 hours of service. One OmbudsmanVolunteer, LaVerne Andress, was one of five finalists whoreceived the prestigious Jefferson Award in March 2005 by TheBakersfield Californian. The program is funded by the KernCounty Aging and Adult Services Department, United Way ofKern County, and Friends of Mercy Foundation.

When speaking of recruiting and honoring OmbudsmanVolunteers as a team project, "Ombie" member DianaCampbell-Rice said, "This has been an exciting and rewardingproject for Leadership Bakersfield Class of 2005 Team 2. TheKern County Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program staffand volunteers serve as client advocates in quality of life issuesfor the elderly, particularly those living in nursing homes, con-valescent hospitals, assisted living and board and care facilities.

We are pleased our Team could provide support in recruitingnew Ombudsman volunteers and honoring those serving inthe current program."

GBLA extends a very heartfelt thank you to the GreaterBakersfield Chamber of Commerce Leadership BakersfieldTeam 2 Ombies, for not only recognizing and honoring themeaningful and difficult work of the Ombudsman Staff andVolunteers, but for also bringing awareness to issues of elderabuse and neglect. Leadership Team 2 "Ombies" are: DianaCampbell-Rice, Matthew Clark, Jana Davis, John Jaramillo,Cathy Patton, Raj Srinivas, Dennis Thompson, and Advisor,Renee Massey. Team 2 sponsors include Dr. Vasanthi Srinivas,General Mills, Kern County Department of Human Services,KGET-17, Lamar Advertising, Occidental Petroleum, and See'sCandies. O

If you would like to join your colleagues in serving on GBLA'sResource Development Committee and/or in supporting the pro-grams of GBLA please call Mary McCabe at (661) 334-4679 ore-mail mmccabe@gbla.org.

Etcheverry continued from page 3

Judge Etcheverry and his wife, Eleanor, have been married for39 years and have two children: Paige Etcheverry-Barnes andJohn Louis Etcheverry. John is a practicing podiatrist withKaiser Permanente here in Bakersfield. From April 1997 to2002, Judge Etcheverry practiced law with his daughterunder the firm name of Etcheverry and Barnes.

The Res Ipsa Loquitur Committee and the KCBA congratu-late Judge Etcheverry on his appointment to the SuperiorCourt Bench.O

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HISTORY COLUMNBy Susan Gill

This column is dedicated to three friends, Robin BunkerBishop, Jay Rosenlieb, and John Laird. We shared the

same teachers and classmates on our journey from kinder-garten through eighth grade. Two of us, Robin and I, were thechildren of lawyers, Bruce Bunker and Barney Gill. Two of us,Jay and I, became lawyers. And the other one of us, John,descended from two prominent Kern County lawyers, JohnWhitcomb Pierpont Laird, and Rollin McLaughlin Laird.

John W. P. Laird was born in 1844 in Mount Carroll, Illinois.When he was eight years old, he immigrated with his familyto El Dorado County, California. The Laird family first livedin a mining camp, where John's mother was killed by a rockblown out by an explosion of powder charges. They latermoved south to Inyo County, where John assisted his fatheron their cattle ranch. He studied the law by campfire, and atage 30, he left the cattle business and embarked on a legalcareer.

John W. P. Laird was admitted to the California State Bar in1879. Shortly thereafter, he became the District Attorney ofInyo County, a position he held until 1886. In 1890, JohnLaird came to Kern County as a special prosecutor in a mur-der trial. Although he was unsuccessful in obtaining a con-viction-the trial ended in a mistrial-John Laird was so enam-ored of Bakersfield, he moved his family here in 1891. In1900, he was elected to the California State Assembly. As anAssemblyman, he had a prominent role in investigating ascandal in Chinatown. In1903 he began the first of two termsas the Kern County District Attorney.

John Laird died in 1911, at the age of 67. He left a widow, sev-eral stepchildren, and three sons, Ernest, who was a courtreporter in Bakersfield, Lester, and Rollin, the Bakersfield CityAttorney.

Rollin Laird was born in 1881, two years after his fatherbecame a lawyer. He attended the University of Washington,and he graduated from Valparaiso Law School in Indiana in1909. He was admitted to practice law in both Indiana andCalifornia.

Rollin Laird enjoyed a short stint in private practice inBakersfield with Fred Borton before becoming the BakersfieldCity Attorney in 1911. Apparently, that was not a full timeposition, as he also represented the Kern County LandCompany.

Rollin Laird left Bakersfield for five years, from 1915 to 1920,moving to Crescent City in deference to his wife's poorhealth. He quickly became known in that community, and heserved one term as the District Attorney of Del Norte Countybefore returning to private practice in Kern County.

In 1928, Rollin Laird was elected to the position to which hehad always aspired, Judge of the Kern County Superior Court.However, his premonition that he would not live to serve outhis term was fulfilled within six months of his election.Shortly after the election, Judge Laird was stricken withinfluenza, which required several months of convalescence.Recovering from his illness, he resumed his place on thebench in April 1929. On the morning of April 29, 1929, hewas in the kitchen of his home at 217 H Street, when he wasstricken with a heart attack and died. He was 48 years old andleft behind his widow, Grace, and two children, Frances, age15, and Rollin, age 12.

Rollin grew up and did not pursue a career in law. He servedin World War II, worked for Standard Oil, and tried his handat farming, before working for Atlantic Richfield for 30 years.He stayed in Bakersfield, married, and had children, one ofwhom was my classmate, John Laird. Rollin's older sister,Frances, however, stayed connected to the Kern County BarAssociation, as she grew up and married John Nairn, who wasa prominent lawyer and Superior Court Judge.

And as for my three friends? Jay Rosenlieb is the managingpartner of Klein, DeNatale, Goldner. Robin Bishop is a schoolcounselor at Walter Stiern Middle School. And, John Laird isa fifth grade teacher at Ruth Clark Harding ElementarySchool - the place where we all met.O

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AN APPEALING MCLEBy Jennifer Thurston

Wendy Cole Lascher, Certified Appellate Specialistand purveyor of all things appellate, presented a

lively discussion on the "nuts and bolts" of appellatepractice at a recent KCBA sponsored MCLE session.

The information-packed meeting discussed the appealprocess from start to finish. Lascher reminded the atten-dees to evaluate several important issues before and dur-ing an appeal. First, an attorney should consider whetherthe matter is appealable. In other words, there must be astatute that allows the appeal or the client's recourse islimited to writ review. Second, an attorney must consid-er the impact of a successful appeal. In several high-pro-file cases, appellants won their appeal, but when the caseswere retried the clients received verdicts that were farworse than the original. Third, the record determineswhether an issue can be raised on appeal. Lascherreminded the group "if it's not in the record, it didn'thappen."

Lascher provided sound tips for writing a brief.

· Omit adjectives as much as possible. The greater the

number of adjectives used, the weaker your argumentappears.

· Never get into a spitting contest with opposing counsel.An attack on opposing counsel - or a response to such anattack - tells the Court that you have no good argumentto make and are trying to hide this by name-calling.· The brief should address no more than two or threeissues.· Be sure to discuss in your brief what you want theCourt to do if it decides you are correct. Should theCourt reverse? Reverse with directions? Affirm?

· Most importantly, always be exceedingly honest in yourrecitation of the facts. If the facts are not favorable toyou, admit it and show the Court why you should winanyway. Misrepresenting the facts will not fool anyoneand will show the Court that you cannot be trusted.

Wendy Cole Lascher has the great distinction of havingargued before the United States Supreme Court as well asin most, if not all, courts of appeal in California. Shemaintains an appellate law practice specializing in appel-late law in Ventura and she teaches appellate advocacy atcolleges of law in Ventura and Santa Barbara. Lascherhas ties to Kern County as she is the daughter of PeggyDarling and the stepdaughter of the late Curtis Darling. O

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THE PROBATE REPORTBy Susan Salvucci

As you may know, the Probate and Estate PlanningSection of KCBA meets the second Wednesday of each

month (except for July and August when we are dark becauseapparently we all go on vacation during those months. Oh,yeah, there's also December when we have to do extra shop-ping, so we are dark then, too). In any event, you will haveto take into consideration that the Probate Report is, ofnecessity, a time-delayed report. If you want to know what ishappening before it happens, you will just have to join oursection, and we'll send you a monthly notice before the meet-ing!

This April, we were honored once again by one of ouresteemed local Judges, Judge Jerold Turner. Judge Turnerspoke to us about Domestic Partnerships, based upon hisstudy of the impact of the California Domestic Partner Rightsand Responsibilities Act of 2003 (aka AB205), effectiveJanuary 1, 2005.

Now, you might wonder why the Probate and Estate PlanningSection would be interested in this new law, but there are afew good reasons. First (but not necessarily foremost), is thatthe topic gave us our required 1-hour MCLE credit in Bias inthe Profession. I have always found it difficult to find aninteresting presentation in that area, but Judge Turner's pres-entation was most enlightening and interesting! Also, a goodreason is that we want to be on the cutting-edge and ready toprovide probate and estate planning for everyone. JudgeTurner and the material he provided as a handout explainedhow the new law dovetails with other laws (such as theProbate Code), as well as how to create and terminate adomestic partnership in California. There are a number ofrequirements necessary to create a domestic partnership. Welearned that when (1) Two adults who have chosen to shareone another's lives in an intimate and committed relationshipof mutual caring, (2) have a common residence for both per-sons, (3) agree to be jointly responsible for the other's basicliving expenses incurred during the partnership, (4) are notmarried to someone else or a member of another domesticpartnership, (5) are not related by blood in a way that wouldprevent them from being married, (6) are both over 18 yearsof age, (7) either or both partners are of the same sex OR oneor both meet the eligibility requirements for Social Securitybenefits (may be same sex if one or both are over 62 years ofage), (8) are both capable of consenting to the domestic part-nership, (9) neither is the member of another domestic partnership that has not been terminated, and (10) both file theDeclaration of Domestic Partnership with the Secretary of

State, they have created a California Domestic Partnership!Because you have to register such a partnership with theCalifornia Secretary of State's office, that office has informa-tion and forms for creation and termination.

Importantly, one must keep in mind that the creation of aCalifornia Domestic Partnership does not, however, impressthe IRS. The IRS could care less! File your taxes and pay upas if you are single! Oh, and becoming a Domestic Partnerdoes not change the character or interest of real or personalproperty, and does not create community property. Interestin property has to be created by joint title. All in all, JudgeTurner's presentation was most valuable, and we do mostgreatly appreciate his willingness to provide us with such awonderful opportunity to learn about this new law. Manythanks to Judge Turner!

Finally, upcoming for our section is the May presentation(which will be over by the time this time-delayed pieceappears in print) by Karen Gaul-Wallace and Gerald Oldfieldon Estate Planning Issues in Family Law. With all the blend-ed and double-blended families these days, estate planning isimperative to keep the peace both in the household and in theprobate court! 'Til next time…review your estate plan, itmay need an update! O

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15

Mentoring Organization Founded byAttorneys Adopts New Name

By Susan Peninger, Program Director, VIP Kern

For the last nine years,VIP Kern has been part of Volunteersin Parole, a statewide nonprofit founded by attorneys to

mentor men and women on parole. Now we are participatingin an historic name change: Volunteers in Parole is now offi-cially, VIP Mentors.

For those of you not familiar with VIP, we are a unique men-toring program founded in 1972 by attorneys who believedthey had a professional obligation to help close the revolvingdoor that characterizes the criminal justice system. Thirty-three years later, that goal is still extremely relevant. VIP is theonly program in California that recruits attorneys to be advi-sors, friends and role models for parolees as they struggle toturn their lives around. VIP Kern is one of 13 VIP programsin major California counties.

Our history shows that you, as an attorney, would make a greatmentor for someone on parole. You are good at helping peo-ple with difficult problems. You have been trained to listenand to communicate. You are familiar with communityresources, and no matter what area of law you practice, you area natural role model for men and women on parole.

VIP attorney mentors have helped thousands of formeroffenders begin new lives that are self-respecting, self-support-ing, and crime-free. Last year, VIP provided mentors for 263men and 180 women on parole. Only 6% experienced parolerevocation or committed a new offense. Compare that to afailure rate for unmentored parolees of 70%!

You could be the person who makes all the difference in theworld and all it takes is a few hours a month. According toRiverside attorney, John Vineyard, the statewide Chair of VIPMentors, "The point is simply to be there for someone who istrying to make important changes in his or her life, no moreor less than I would do for any other friend." Mentors checkin with their mentees weekly, spend time together on activitiesand act as advisors and friends. Most important, they serve assomeone with whom parolees can share success, analyze set-backs, learn to cope with crisis, and expand horizons.

Why change our name? We wanted to make the point thatVIP has evolved into an exceptional organization with a mis-sion that is still timely. VIP Mentors celebrates what we dobest-mentoring. It pays tribute to our excellent volunteerattorney mentors and parolee mentees as each is a VeryImportant Person. The new motto captures in just threewords why VIP is such a great service to the community andwhy we are dedicated to be-Partners in Success!

VIP Kern needs you to become a mentor! For additionalinformation, visit VIP's website at www.vipmentors.org, con-tact Kern's Program Director Susan Peninger at 661-633-5100x 232 or email vip-kern@bak.rr.com. We can't do this withoutYOU! O

Volunteer Attorney Program ofKern County

By Jill Platt, Private Attorney Involvement (PAI) Coordinator

Periodically, the Volunteer Attorney Program attemptsto procure assistance from the private bar for cases

under review at Greater Bakersfield Legal Assistance, Inc.Cases may arise from any of several GBLA programs,including the Community Homeless Law Center, Legaland Social Services for Victims of Domestic Violence,Seniors Law Center, Kern County Long-Term CareOmbudsman Program, Housing Services, Family andChildren Services, and Kern Health Consumer Center.

GBLA's Volunteer Attorney Program wants you to knowthat not all cases require a large amount of time andresources. Sometimes GBLA attorneys simply need anadvisory opinion when the issue extends beyond ourknowledge in a particular area of law. Other cases requirebrief services like writing a letter on behalf of the client.Some cases require a private attorney to serve as co-coun-sel and mentor a young GBLA staff attorney. However,some cases are complicated and require extensive litiga-tion. Often the litigation we encounter provides anopportunity to collect attorney's fees. Although GBLAitself may not recover attorneys' fees, the VolunteerAttorney may! The Volunteer Attorney Program also hasfunds available to reimburse for necessary costs incurredwhile representing a GBLA client as a Volunteer Attorney.

Without the generosity and kindness of the private bar,GBLA would not be able to meet the civil legal needs ofour growing low-income community. If you would like tomeet and discuss how you can volunteer, please give me acall: Jill Platt at (661) 321-3985 or send an email to:jplatt@gbla.org. O

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17

From the Circular File.....

By F. Lee Smedley, Legal Affairs Correspondent

Lately where I work we have all been receiving a daily e-mail message from the Safety Department. Most of the

e-mails point out ways we can prevent or avoid accidents atwork. Helpful information. No doubt beneficial for all ofus worker bees and for the administration of the hive.

Here's an example:

"Prevent an accident this week.... If you see an object on thefloor or a spilled liquid … stop and clean it up...the nextperson through the area may not see it… We had over 303slip trip and fall accidents the last fiscal year at a cost ofnearly $1,389,076.17. Be safe out there."

Okay. Next time I spill water lifting the fifty-poundSparkletts bottle onto the dispenser, I'll take an extramoment from my busy schedule to wipe up the gallon lefton the floor.

Of course, I recall an e-mail directive regarding the fifty-pound Sparkletts bottle:

"Prevent an accident this week.... If you change the fifty-pound Sparkletts bottle because some inconsiderate co-worker left the bottle empty.... stop and do it slowly.... lift-ing it and flipping it over onto the water cooler too quicklymay cause water to spill out....We had over 3000 gallonsspill on the floor last fiscal year at a cost of nearly$577,331.59 of wasted bottled water. Be H2O frugal outthere."

But wait there once was an e-mail message about hydrationat work:

"Improve productivity this week.... Remember to keepyourself properly hydrated during the work day…stop anddrink an eight-ounce glass of water several times a day...notdrinking enough water causes you to lose focus during theworkday…We lost over 30,000 work hours due to employ-ees who lost their focus and played solitaire on their workcomputer instead of doing work last fiscal year at a cost ofnearly $6,861,211.07 of wasted labor costs. Be productiveand quenched out there."

With all of the e-mail regarding drinking water at the office,I expect to see this one soon:

"Prevent an accident this week.... If you are entering the

restroom, open the door slowly into the restroom and whenentering the toilet stalls... somebody may be just on theother side of the door... the swinging door could smackthem and cause a serious injury.... We had over 302 swing-ing restroom door and stall door accidents the last fiscalyear at a cost of nearly $2,700,000. Be safe out there."

Here are some topics I'd like to see addressed in the future:

· Avoiding paper cuts by switching to an all e-documentworld.

· Walking with the pencil pointed downward after usingthe electric pencil sharpener.

· Reducing eyestrain by deleting all safety tip e-mails beforereading. O

Advocatus CaecusBy C. M. (Bud) Starr II

In 330 B.C., Alexander the Great was completing his con-quest of the known civilized world; he was twenty-six

years old. In the summer of 1905, Albert Einstein pub-lished three brilliant scientific papers, including hisdescription of the theory of special relativity; he was twen-ty-six years old. In December of 1955, Dr. Martin LutherKing, Jr. was selected to head the boycott of the public busservice in Montgomery, Alabama, which launched hiscareer of non-violent, justice-based, civil disobedience; hewas twenty-six years old.

This summer, approximately 8,000 men and women willtake the California Bar Examination. If history repeatsitself, about half of those candidates will pass the examina-tion and be admitted to practice law in California. A greatmany of those men and women will be around the age oftwenty-six.

Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes taught that "the life of thelaw has not been logic: it has been experience." As lawyers,we often refer with pride to our number of years of experi-ence. No doubt we have some pride in our triumphs, someof our failures, and even our gray hair.

As we look forward to absorbing new young men andwomen into our profession this summer and fall, weshould be happy to share the benefits of our experiencewith these new, eager minds. At the same time, we shouldnot fail to acknowledge that among those fresh, newlawyers, we will find genius, creativity, and a special fewwho may greatly surpass our achievements. O

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JUDGE ANSPACH APPOINTS A CASAVOLUNTEER TO THE 1000th KERN

COUNTY CHILDBy Maggie Cushine

T erry Foley, Susan Gill, Judy Newman, CindyStiles and Suzan Hopper began meeting with

Judge Robert Anspach in 1992 to bring the CASA(Court Appointed Special Advocate) Program toKern County. In September 1994, the first CASAvolunteer, Colleen McGauley, was appointed to thefirst child. Since that time CASA has trained 344CASA volunteers.

On May 10, 2005, CASA of Kern County reached amajor milestone. In the courtroom crowded withCASA volunteers, board members, friends and thefounders of CASA, Judge Anspach signed the 1000thCASA appointment order. Judge Anspach indicatedthat he was now looking forward to signing the2000th appointment order!

CASA of Kern County is a non-profit organizationthat trains community volunteers to speak for thebest interests of abused and neglected children incourt. Currently, there are over 3,400 children in theJuvenile Dependency System and more CASA volun-teers are needed. The next CASA training begins onMay 24, 2005. Please call 631-CASA (2272) and visitthe CASA website www.kerncasa.org. "Stand up forchildren, so they'll stand a chance."O

Request For Proposals...

HEARING OFFICERSDISABILITY RETIREMENT

The Kern County Employees' RetirementAssociation (KCERA) is seeking qualified legal pro-fessionals to serve on its panel of hearing officers topreside over administrative hearings held for thepurpose of determining eligibility for disabilityretirement.

Applicants must be a member of the State Bar ofCalifornia and should have a minimum of five yearsexperience in administrative agency proceedings.Prior experience in a judicial or quasi-judicial posi-tion is desirable. Hearing officers are engaged asindependent contractors for a period of five years.

Interested candidates will find the Request forProposal on the KCERA website: www.kcera.org.Responses must be postmarked no later thanMonday, June 20, 2005.

WORKERS' COMPENSATION ATTORNEY

The Office of County Counsel is seeking a Workers'Compensation defense attorney with a minimum of twoto five years experience in the practice of Workers'Compensation law. Please send a resume to B.C.Barmann, Sr., County Counsel, 1115 Truxtun Avenue,Bakersfield, CA 93301. Any questions should be direct-ed to Karen Kitchen, Sr. Paralegal at (661) 868-3847.

LOCAL ATTORNEY LARRY PEAKE IS SEEKING APART-TIME WORD PROCESSOR

(IN CIVIL LITIGATION).We are accepting resumes from typists with a minimumof 2 years experience typing or word processing (60+wpm). Resumes may be faxed to Wall, Wall & Peake at327-8568, attention: Kandis Peake.

OFFICE SPACE AVAILABLE

1400 CHESTER AVENUE. PRIME DOWNTOWNLOCATION. WALK TO COURTHOUSE. NEW OWN-ERSHIP. LOTS OF PARKING. 400 - 4000 SF. REMOD-EL TO SUIT. FULL SERVICE OFFICES. PLEASE CON-TACT RICH KRIZO AT (661) 326-7962.

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The Res Ipsa Loquitur EditorialBoard always welcomes the sub-

mission of articles and letters to theeditor from our readership.

To submit either an article or a letterto the editor for consideration forpublication in an issue of the ResIpsa Loquitur, please send your sub-mission in Office 95, Office 98,Office 2000 version of MS Word orWordPerfect formats to the KernCounty Bar Association. You may e-mail your submission toinfo@kernbar.org. You may sendyour submission via regular mail to:1675 Chester Avenue, Suite 220,Bakersfield, California, 93301. If yousend an article via regular mail, alsosend a copy of the submission on

disc in addition to a hard copy.Articles should be no more than 750words in length.

The party submitting any article orletter to the editor agrees that by sub-mitting the same they expressly grantthe Res Ipsa Loquitur Editorial Boardthe right to edit or alter the article inany manner deemed necessary. TheRes Ipsa Loquitur Editorial Boardreserves the right to refuse to publishthe submitted article or letter.

Any submission of an article or letterto the editor becomes the property ofthe Kern County Bar Associationand can be reprinted at the discre-tion of the KCBA without furtherapproval from the submitter.

Res Ipsa Loquitur Article and Letter Submission Policy

KCBA Staff Email Addresses

Suzan Hopper: shopper@kernbar.orgWendy Ash: wash@kernbar.orgRobert Young: ryoung@kernbar.orgTina Calistro: tcalistro@kernbar.orgMichelle Rohatsch mrohatsch@kernbar.org

ANNUAL AWARDS LUNCHEON AND INSTALLATION OF OFFICERS

Featuring a Surprise Guest

June 9, 2005

The Kern County Paralegal Association presents its annual awardsluncheon and installation of officers for 2005/2006 on Thursday, June

9, 2005. Awards for Paralegal of the Year and Outstanding Member of theYear will be presented. Please join us to honor the achievements of thesefine paralegals and have some fun with a surprise guest.

The luncheon will be held at 12:00 noon at Coconut Joe's, 4000 EastonDrive, Suite B, Bakersfield, California. Coconut Joe's is located just west ofthe intersection of Easton Drive and Chester Lane. Park behind the oldMervyn's Plaza movie theater and walk across the street to the "club."Watch for the tiki torches!

The cost is $16.00 to KCPA members, and $20.00 to attorneys and non-members. Please RSVP by June 7, 2005, to Aneta Adams (KCPA ProgramsDirector) at 328-1800 (Arrache, Clark & Potter), or Email her ataadams@acplaw.com.O

KCBA CHARITABLE FOUNDATION

Donations for May 2005

Michael Adamson

Sandra Kuhn McCormack

THE KERN COUNTY BARASSOCIATION

Provides leadership in advanc-ing the professional interests ofthe membership and servingthe legal interests of the com-munity.

Goal I: Promote professionaldevelopment and improve par-ticipation by all members.

Goal II: Foster cooperationand goodwill between the legalprofession and the communityand disseminate informationto the public.

Goal III: Build and maintainprograms to assure financialstability.

Goal IV: Facilitate the use oftechnology in the practice oflaw.

RES IPSA INSERT POLICY

Preprinted 8 x 11 ½ single pagecirculars may be inserted for acharge of $140 per publication.If you wish KCBA to print thecopies, the cost will be $175 perissue. Prices include postage &handling.

Kern County Bar Association1675 Chester Avenue, Suite 220Bakersfield, CA 93301

PRSRT-STDU.S. Postage

PAIDBakersfield, CAPermit # 947

2005 SCHEDULE OF MEETINGS

JUNE

1 KCBA Charitable Foundation Meeting

7 Executive Committee Meeting

8 Res Ispa Loquitur Newsletter Deadline

14 Board of Directors Meeting

17 Res Ispa Loquitur Committee Meeting

Kern County Bar Association1675 Chester Avenue,

Suite 220Bakersfield, CA 93301

(661) 334-4700 FAX (661) 334-4701info@kernbar.org

Officers

President..................................................Thomas S. ClarkPresident Elect.........................................Catherine E. BennettVice President..........................................Steven M. KatzVice Presicent..........................................David A. TorresPast President..........................................Richard J. Papst

Board

John R. Brownlee.......................................Frank ButkiewiczLarry L. Fields..............................................Susan M. GillTony K. Heider.............................................Gael G. MuellerRobert J. Noriega.......................................John R. SzewczykJennifer L. Thurston..................................Paul A. Welchans

Executive Director.....................................Suzan D. HopperIDP Administrator.....................................Robert M. Young

StaffWendy M. Ash Tina A. Calistro

Michelle Rohatsch

Res Ispa Loquitur Committee

Steven M. Katz, co-chair Suzan D. HopperFrank Butkiewicz, co-chair Jay RosenliebLarry L. Fields Jay C. SmithBrenda Enderle Gabriole Zeviar-Geese

C. W. Hine

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