Appeals Court Backs Probate Judgment

The state appeals court has ruled that former probate lawyer James D. Gunderson must return about $4 million he received from the estate of a 98-year-old Leisure World client.

The decision Wednesday upheld an Orange County Superior Court judge’s order that Gunderson repay the money, plus interest, to the heirs of Merrill A. Miller, who died in 1992 and left an $18-million estate.

The appellate panel, however, overturned a civil court decision that Gunderson pay $1.5 million in attorney fees to Miller’s heirs.

Attorneys of Miller’s family and Gunderson could not be reached for comment.

During the civil trial, Gunderson testified that Miller was his best friend and fishing buddy. Miller, he said, wanted him to have the lion’s share of his estate.

The appellate court, however, said Gunderson misused his position to gain money from Miller and was obligated to repay the funds to his client’s relatives.

“Time and time again, Gunderson used fiduciary relationships with clients to benefit himself and his family,” the appellate court wrote.

Gunderson, 73, of Laguna Niguel, has vigorously denied any wrongdoing.

His inheritances from the Miller estate, and from those of several of his other elderly clients, were revealed in a series of articles published by The Times in late 1992.

The articles prompted the state Legislature in 1993 to pass a law that invalidated most bequests to attorneys who prepare wills and trusts naming themselves as beneficiaries.