Inland Empire Estate Planning Attorneys

Dennis broke his neck and back in a car accident in 1992. As a result of his injuries, he was left paralyzed. The experiences he gained as the result of his injuries are invaluable in his work with the disabled and senior communities of Riverside County and San Bernardino County. He has firsthand experience in dealing with the physical and emotional aspects of having a disability and how the system works for those requiring care.

Dennis Sandoval is the only attorney in California who has certifications in the three areas of estate planning, elder law and taxation. He received his Certified Estate Planning, Trust and Probate Law Specialist designation from the California Bar Board of Legal Specialization in 1998 and his Certified Taxation Law Specialist designation in 2000 from the same organization. He is a Certified Elder Law Attorney (CELA), a designation he proudly received in 2004 after meeting all the requirements established by the National Elder Law Foundation (NELF) and the American Bar Association. Dennis has also holds the designation as an Accredited Estate Planner® (AEP) from the National Association of Estate Planners and Councils.

Dennis’ educational degrees include a Master of Tax Law Degree (LL.M.), a Juris Doctorate (J.D.) degree and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Administration / Finance.

Before becoming a lawyer, Dennis owned a tax planning / preparation and financial planning firm in Orange, California. During the time he practiced in this area he received his designations as an Enrolled Agent with the Internal Revenue Services and as a Certified Financial Planner® (CFP) and Registered Financial Consultant® (RFC) designations. Although he no longer practices as a financial planner, the knowledge and experience he gained from serving his tax and financial planning clients is invaluable in assisting his estate planning, elder law and tax controversy clients, as well as working with their financial advisors.

In addition to overseeing his estate planning, elder law and tax law practice in Riverside, Dennis served for seventeen years as the Director of Education for the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys (AAEPA). The AAEPA is a nationwide membership organization of attorneys concentrating their law practices in estate planning.

Dennis served on the Board of Directors of the National Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys (NAELA) and chaired many of its Sections and Task Groups. He also served as a member of the Board of Directors of the National Elder Law Foundation. In 2014, Dennis was named as a Fellow of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorney, a distinction held by less than 100 attorneys nationwide.

For many years Dennis served on the Board of Directors of the Southern California Chapter of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (Southern California NAELA). He served as its president. He was the 2011 Member of the Year of Southern California NAELA.

Dennis also served multiple terms as Chairperson for the Estate Planning and Elder Law Section of the Riverside County Bar Association. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of The Estate Planning Council of Riverside and several local, state, and national charitable organizations.

Dennis is one of only eight California members of the Special Needs Alliance, a nationwide membership organization of attorneys interested in advancing the care of special needs persons through proper planning. Dennis is active in many special needs and disability organizations, including ARC, NAMI, TACA, the Autism Society and the Special Olympics. He is also a member of The Academy of Special Needs Planners, a nationwide membership organization dedicated to assisting persons with disabilities.
Dennis is member of the Riverside County Bar Association, the San Bernardino County Bar Association, the Riverside County Estate Planning Council, the San Bernardino County Estate Planning Council, the Inland Empire Planned Giving Roundtable and the Consumer Attorneys of California.

Dennis’ law firm is also a charter member of the Life Care Planning Law Firms Association (LCPLFA). The LCPLFA is a nationwide membership organization of law firms that employ social workers and geriatric care managers as part of a holistic team of professionals to assist frail elders and disabled persons get the highest quality of care. Sandoval Legacy Group, a division of Holstrom, Block & Parke, A Professional Law Corporation is the only law firm in Riverside and San Bernardino Counties with a social worker on its staff. Dennis served on the Board of Directors of LCPLFA and was its Vice President in 2011.
Dennis teaches as an adjunct professor at several law schools and universities, including Stetson University College of Law, at Chapman University Dale E. Fowler School of Law, University of California, and University of Redlands.

Dennis grew up in Riverside, where he attended Our Lady of Perpetual Help grade school and Notre Dame High School. In high school and college, Dennis was active in many sports, lettering in football and wrestling. His current hobbies include building and maintaining marine aquariums, building model ships, scrimshaw, and photography. Prior to becoming paralyzed, he was an assistant scuba diving instructor for a dive shop in Orange. He lives in Norco, California with his wife, three daughters, grandson, and their menagerie of pets.

Our associate attorney, David Hamilton, earned his Bachelor of Arts in Organizational Leadership from Chapman University. He earned his Juris Doctor, magna cum laude, from the University of La Verne College of Law.

During law school, David served as editor in chief for both the University of La Verne Law Review and the Journal of Law, Business & Ethics. David also competed on La Verne Law’s National Moot Court Competition Team. David made the Dean’s List every semester and earned a CALI award for achieving the highest grade in 13 courses. For his legal writing, David was recognized in the National Order of Scribes by the American Society of Legal Writers.

David is a member of the Riverside and San Bernardino County Bar Associations. He graduated from the New Attorney Academy, which is a training program for new attorneys provided by the Riverside County Bar Association and the Riverside Superior Court. David served as a Member at Large on the Board of the Riverside County Barristers Association. He is also a member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys, American Bar Association, and Consumer Attorneys of California.

David published an article in the Journal of the Patent and Trademark Office Society. It’s My Copy and I’ll Sell It If I Want To: Capitol Records, LLC v. ReDigi Inc., 97 J. Pat. & Trademark Off. Soc’y 232 (2015). David is also a co-author of the Continuing Education of the Bar’s treatise, Special Needs Trusts: Planning, Drafting, and Administration.

David is admitted to practice before all courts in the State of California and in the United States District Court, Central District of California.

David is also an adjunct professor at the University of La Verne College of Law, where he teaches legal writing and strategic legal methods. In his spare time, he enjoys spending time with his wife and kids.

Richard’s practice includes clients with estates and businesses of all sizes and types, from the very small to multi-million-dollar operations–both for profit and nonprofit. He engages in estate planning for single and married individuals with a particular interest in assisting business owners and family-owned businesses with their estate and business planning needs.

He is well-versed in the estate planning, business planning, and business succession concerns of healthcare professionals, having represented physicians, osteopaths, podiatrists, dentists, optometrists, chiropractors, and various allied health professions.

With respect to entities, he has represented both non-profit and for-profit hospitals, multi-hospital systems, multi-specialty medical groups, home health care agencies, clinical laboratories, and independent practice associations and foundations. Other business clients include construction companies, engineering and surveying, trucking, real estate development and management, and various types of technology, churches, foster care agencies, and law practices.

Although his practice is primarily transactional in nature, he been involved in litigation of such cases as medical employment contract matters, physician rights, anti-trust, unlicensed practice of medicine, and third-party payor contracting disputes.
Prior to entering the practice of law, Richard worked in hospital administration and for La Sierra University as the associate director of public relations and development. He has served on the faculty of California Southern College of Law and taught business law and other business courses for the various Riverside Community College District campuses.

He has conducted training as a certified bullying prevention trainer for the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, Clemson University, and assisted schools and youth programs in implementing the program. He has served in various capacities in numerous civic, religious, and charitable boards and committees–including hospice, Rotary, Kiwanis, United Way, and the Riverside County Bar Association.

Richard served as chair of the Riverside County Bar Association Continuing Education Committee and co-chair of the Estate Planning and Elder Law Section. He has volunteered as a temporary judge for the Superior Court.

In his spare time, Richard serves as the Director for the Center for Conflict Resolution in the Tom and Vi Zapara School of Business at La Sierra University.

Mr. Pershing is an alumnus of La Sierra University and received his mediation training from Pepperdine University, School of Law, Straus Institute. Like Dennis and Dayn Holstrom, he obtained his law degree through Western State University College of Law.

With respect to mediation, Richard believes in the “miracle of mediation” which occurs when parties to a dispute take ownership of their matter and exercise the power vested in them to resolve it instead of letting an outsider impose an outcome. He serves as a mediator for the Riverside County Superior Court and the Riverside County Bar Association Dispute Resolution Service. He mediates trust and will disputes and certain types of contractual or business disputes.

Richard is married and has two daughters. In his spare time, he enjoys painting and water coloring with his wife. He has been blessed with two grandchildren — with a third one on the way.

Taylor Holstrom received his Juris Doctor degree from Western State College of Law, graduating with cum laude honors. Prior to law school, he attended Pennsylvania State University on a Division-I ice hockey scholarship where was nominated for the prestigious Hobey Baker Award. He graduated Penn State with two Bachelor of Science degrees – one in Economics: and the other in Energy, Business and Finance.

Taylor comes from a family of distinguished family law attorneys. His father, Dayn Holstrom, is the founding partner of Holstrom, Block + Parke (HBP), the parent law firm of Sandoval Legacy Group. His sister, Kristen Holstrom, is a Certified Family Law Specialist, Super Lawyer, and partner, working out of the Corona office of HBP.

We are excited to have Taylor as a part of our team at Sandoval Legacy Group. He will be working out of our Riverside, Corona, and Newport Beach offices.

In his spare time, Taylor continues to enjoy hockey both as a player and coach. Additionally, he is always looking for new places to explore or adventures to take with his dog Archie.

Our newest attorney, Ruth Lecaro, earned her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science Law and Society from the University of California Riverside (UCR). She earned her Juris Doctor, from Trinity Law School in Orange County in the city of Santa Ana, California. During law school, Ruth participated and served as secretary of the student body.

Ruth has overcome many obstacles and has proven to be a person that has perseverance and dedication. She is a team player and is always willing to lend a hand wherever she is needed. Ruth has always had a passion, respect, and desire to help with a community of people that are overlooked such as the elderly and disabled. She has worked in various capacities with the elderly and disabled. She has served on a church ministry for many years that serves the elderly in retirement homes, skilled nursing homes and assisted living homes by bringing a message of hope. Her faith in God has set the tone in her values in everyday life. She truly feels that the Lord has brought her to the field of law and in particular, the practice of law focused on probate law.

In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her husband (Jeff) and her Sphynx cat (Pearl), going to church, and going to Disneyland.