County Bar Widens Probe of Trustees : Legal issues: Group says any misconduct by probate attorneys it uncovers will be reported to state organization, which has authority to discipline lawyers.

The Orange County Bar Assn. has begun working with the County Sheriff’s Department in a widening probe of possible misconduct by probate attorneys who make themselves beneficiaries of their clients’ estates, officials said Saturday.

The bar had originally limited its investigation to Laguna Hills lawyer James D. Gunderson, 68, who has made millions by writing himself in as a beneficiary while preparing wills and trusts for elderly clients. A longstanding state Supreme Court ruling says anything more than a “modest” gift raises questions of impropriety.

Gunderson has denied any misconduct.

Attorney Michelle Reinglass, president of the 6,000-member association, said revelations about Gunderson that first appeared in The Times in November, and subsequent stories about two other attorneys, have now spurred the local bar to investigate the extent of possible misconduct in the county.

“There has been a lot of concern caused by this issue and we want to do what we can to take action where there is misconduct,” Reinglass said. While noting that probate attorneys currently under scrutiny have not been formally charged, fellow attorneys fear their reputations may be tarnished, she said.

In December, Superior Court Judge Tully H. Seymour removed attorney Donald Bruce Black of Laguna Beach as trustee of an estate because of allegations that he used a client’s trust fund to finance real estate ventures.

Most recently, it was revealed that Irvine attorney Lloyd G. Copenbarger, 51, is under investigation by the State Bar of California for allegedly attempting to control an Anaheim widow’s $24-million estate.

Both Black and Copenbarger have denied any wrongdoing.

Two Orange County lawmakers, Assemblymen Tom Umberg (D-Garden Grove) and Bill Morrow (R-Oceanside), are co-sponsoring a bill that would prohibit attorneys from drawing up wills and trusts in their favor. The bill would also invalidate “no-contest” clauses in wills, a provision found in many of the wills that Gunderson prepared.

The provision penalizes heirs that challenge the will.

Starting in the next few weeks, complaints called into a sheriff’s hot line will be referred to the local bar for investigation by a panel of volunteer attorneys, Reinglass said. If misconduct is uncovered, details will be forwarded to the State Bar of California, which has the authority to discipline attorneys, she said.

“I’m not sure the problem is widespread, but we have an obligation to step in if it is,” Reinglass said.

Sheriff’s officials said those with information should call (714) 647-7025.

“We will be a referral source for the sheriff’s, and volunteer lawyers will review wills involving attorneys who are beneficiaries,” she said. “We consider this a public service and an assistance to the State Bar.”