James R. Wade

Affiliations

CURRENT POSITIONS AND AFFILIATIONS:

Member:
National College of Probate Judges
American Law Institute

Fellow:
American College of Trust and Estate Counsel

Liasion:
Joint Editorial Board of Uniform Trust and Estate Acts - Liason to State Courts
American Bar Association Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section - Liaision to National College of Probate Judges

Advisor:
American Law Institute, Restatement of Trusts Third

PREVIOUS POSITIONS AND AFFILIATIONS:

Judge:
Denver Probate Court (1977 - 1982)

Lecturer:
National Judicial College (Reno, Nevada) (Specialty Course in Probate)

National Center for State Courts (Williamsburg, Virginia) (Specialty Course in Probate)

University of Denver College of Law Program for Advanced Professional Development (15 Hour Course in Estate Administration) (1983, 1984, 1987)

University of Denver College of Law (1980, 1982-83, 1984-85, 1988, 1989-90) and University of Colorado Law School (1984) (Law School Basic Courses in Wills, Trusts and Estates; University of Denver - Two Quarters; University of Colorado - One Semester)

Amakasu Charitable Trust Law, Tokyo, Japan, 1998

Diplomat:
International Academy of Estate and Trust Law (1984-2013)

Visiting Professor:
McGeorge School of Law (University of the Pacific), Sacramento, California, 1994
University of Miami Graduate Program in Estate Planning, March 1995; February 1996

Chair:
American Bar Association Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section Committees on Role, Function and Liability of the Estate Lawyer, and on Creditors Rights

Colorado Bar Association, Probate and Trust Law Section

Colorado Bar Association, Joint Family Law and Probate and Trust Law Sections Committee on Trust Interests in Dissolution Cases (Balanson-Gorman Committee)

Colorado Bar Fellows

Council Member:
American Bar Association Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section

Officer:
American Bar Association Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section

Liaison:
American Bar Association Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section Liaison to National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws, Custodial Trust Act Project

American Bar Association Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section Liaison to National College of Probate Judges

Trustee:
Clayton College Trust (1986-1992)
Colorado Bar Foundation

Regent and Committee Chair:
American College of Trust and Estate Counsel

Advisor:
NRI Panel on Developing a Trust Code for the People’s Republic, Beijing, China, 1996

American Bar Association Section of Real Property, Probate, and Trust Law Re: Uniform Guardianship and Protective Proceedings Act

American Bar Association Section of Real Property, Probate, and Trust Law to the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws, Uniform Custodial Trust Act

Member:
Colorado Supreme Court Committee on Civil Jury Instructions (1977-1998)

Colorado Bar Association, Board of Governors

Governor's Commission on Life and the Law

ABA Special Probate and Trust Division Study Committee on Professional ResponsibilityCommission on National Probate Court Standards (National College of Probate Judges-National Center for State Courts)

American Bar Association Section of Real Property, Probate, and Trust Law

Member, Fordham Law School Conference on Ethical Issues in Representing Older Clients (1993)

Invited Conferee:
WINGSPREAD, The First and Second National Guardianship Conferences, 1988
University of Georgia Law School Conference on Legal and Ethical Aspects of Dementia, 2001
WINGSPAN, The First and Second National Guardianship Conferences, 2002

Publications

BOOKS AND PRACTICE MATERIALS:

Wade/Parks Colorado Law of Wills, Trust and Fiduciary Administration (Formerly Parks' Colorado Probate Practice Manual) (2013, Continuing Legal Education in Colorado) (Substantive Law Oriented)

Colorado Probate System (2013, Continuing Legal Education in Colorado) (Basic Practice Manual)

So Now You Are A Guardian; So Now You Are A Conservator; and So Now You Are A Personal Representative (Original Author of Fiduciary Pamphlets Published by the Colorado Bar Association, 1982, for Circulation to Members of the Probate and Trust Law Section and the Colorado Probate Courts by the Bar Association and the State Court Administrator's Office)

NATIONAL ARTICLES:

Surcharge Litigation - Miscellaneous Aspects (Portion of Series of Articles on "Surcharge Litigation - How to Avoid It"), 16 Real Property, Probate and Trust Journal, p. 760 (Winter 1981 Issue)

When Can a Lawyer Represent Both Husband and Wife in Estate Planning, Probate and Property, Volume 1, No. 2 (March/April 1987)

The Uniform Custodial Trust Act, Probate and Property, Volume 1, No. 6 (November/December 1987)

1987 Developments in Probate and Trust Law, 23 Real Property Probate and Trust Law Journal, p. 27 (Summer 1988)

Published Notice is not Enough, Probate and Property, Volume 2, No. 5 (September/October 1988)

Preparation of Wills and Trusts That Name Drafting Lawyer as Fiduciary, Report of the Special Committee on Professional Responsibility (JRW Principal Drafter), 28 Real Property Probate and Trust Law Journal, p.803 (Winter 1994)

Representation of Clients under a Disability - Recent Developments, Trusts & Estates, Volume 136, No. 6 (May 1997)

Colorado’s Adoption of the Uniform Probate Code, Probate Law Journal of Ohio (September/October 2002)

Gifting Without Explicit Authority, Trusts & Estates, Volume 142, No. 6 (July 2003)

COLORADO LAWYER ARTICLES:

Bond Practice Under the Colorado Probate Code, March 1975, p. 269

Probate Avoidance Under the Colorado Probate Code, August 1975, p. 1665

Transferring a Trust to a More Appropriate Location, August 1976, p. 1001

1976 Tax Reform Act-Basis Rules, September 1977, p. 1563

1976 Tax Reform Act-Distributions From Estates, November 1977, p. 1949

The Court Trust, A Conservatorship Alternative, August 1978, p. 1341

Disclaimers Under the Colorado Probate Code, September 1978, p. 1606

Minors' Personal Injury Settlements, April 1979, p. 632

New Guardianship Law and Practice, August 1979, p. 1454

Creditors' Rights Against Non-Probate Assets, February 1980, p. 1568

Professional Responsibilities and the Estate Lawyer, August 1980, p. 1568

Notice Requirements Under the Colorado Probate Code, April 1981, p. 759

Ante Mortem Probate: An Idea Whose Time Has Come, November 1981, p. 2834

Fiduciary Accounting - Are the Ground Rules Clear, May 1982, p. 1192

Disposition of Last Remains (Pre-Death Aspects), December 1982, p. 2986

Disposition of Last Remains (Post-Death Aspects), March 1983, p. 439

Uniform Marital Property Act, February 1984, p. 220

Notice and Due Process in Probate Revisited, January 1985, p. 29

Uniform State Laws of Interest to Colorado Lawyers, November 1985, p. 1961

Trust Termination and Modification, March 1986, p. 389

Published Notice Held Ineffective as to Known Creditors, July 1988, p. 1320

The "New" Prudent Investor Rule, April 1991, p. 713

Introduction to Colorado’s New Principal and Income Act, March 2001, p. 55

The Uniform Transfers to Minors Act: Extending the Period of Protection, January 2006, p. 27

PRINTED CLE PROGRAMS, INCLUDING MATERIALS
(SELECTED - SINCE 1990):

Creditors' Claims and Family Protection, for Colorado Practical Probate, Professional Education Systems, Inc., Denver, Colorado, December 1990

Creditors' Claims in Probate -- The Aftermath of Tulsa Professional Collection Services, Inc. v. Pope, for American College of Trust and Estate Counsel Annual Meeting, Hilton Head, South Carolina, March 1991

Non Tax Current Developments 1988-91, 1991 Advanced Estate Planning Symposium, University of Denver College of Law Institute for Advanced Legal Studies, Denver, Colorado, September 1991
Family Protection - The Uniform Probate Code Approach, for American College of Trust and Estate Counsel Annual Meeting, Palm Desert, California, March 1992

Non-Routine Estate Administration - Current Issues and Developments, Institute for Advanced Legal Studies (University of Denver College of Law, Six Week Program March 1992 to May 1992)

Current Developments in Ethical Problems Faced by Estate Planners, UCLA-CEB Estate Planning Institute, Los Angeles, California; Published in Estate Planning 1992, p.95

Uniform Probate Code Article II as Proposed for Adoption in Colorado, 1993 Advanced Estate Planning Symposium, University of Denver College of Law Institute for Advanced Legal Studies, Denver, Colorado, September 1993

Developments in the Drafting and Administration of Trusts, Denver Association of Life Underwriters Second Annual Estate Planning Seminar, Denver, Colorado, January 1994

Ethics in Estate Planning and Administration, AICPA Advanced Estate Planning Conference, Washington, D.C., July 1995

Deals, Dirt, Death and Taxes - Real Life Ethical Issues of the Transactional Lawyer, Continuing Legal Education in Colorado, Denver, Colorado, November 1995

New Colorado Prudent Investor Act and its Impact on Fiduciaries, 1996 Estate Planning Retreat, Continuing Legal Education in Colorado, Steamboat Springs, Colorado, June 1996

End of Life Issues: Counseling the Client and Family, University of Denver College of Law, Institute for Advanced Legal Studies, 17th Biennial Advanced Estate Planning Symposium, September 1997, Co-Authored with Kay Kramer Wade

Estate Planning for Taxable Estates - A Time of Transition, Young Lawyers’ Division, Denver Bar Association, April 1998

Guardianship Reform in the United States - A Current Perspective, Shinoshoshi-Lawyers Association, Tokyo, Japan, October 1998

Common Uses of Private Trusts in the United States, Japanese Trust Bankers Association, Tokyo, Japan, October 1998

Incompetency and Incapacity, Medical Disorders, Powers of Attorney, Medical and Long Term Care Insurance, Bereavement and Other End of Life Issues, American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, Maui, Hawaii, March 1999

End of Life Issues: Gaining Control, National College of Probate Judges, Jekyll Island, Georgia, April 1999

Basic Probate Administration, Continuing Legal Education in Colorado, Denver, Colorado, April 1999

Multi Disciplinary Practice From the Perspective of a Small (Boutique) Law Firm Practitioner, American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, Scottsdale, Arizona, February 2000

When Emotions and Law Mix: End of Life Issues from Both Perspectives, National Association of Personal Financial Planners, Minneapolis, Minnesota, May 2000

Drafting, Funding and Administering Revocable Living Trusts in Colorado, Halfmoon, LLC, Denver, Colorado, July 2001

What to Do About Estate Tax Reform, Colorado Bar Convention, Vail, Colorado, September 2001

Colorado’s New Principal and Income Act, Colorado Chapter of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, Vail, Colorado, September 2001

Colorado Estate Planning Forms, Colorado Bar Association CLE, January 2002 and February 2002

Modification, Reformation, and Termination of Trusts Under Existing Law and the Anticipated Colorado Trust Code, 2002 Estate Planning Retreat, CLE in Colorado, Inc., Steamboat Springs, Colorado, June 2002

Estate Planning Methods for Impending Death, Boulder Estate Planning Council, February 2003

Law Reform in Colorado - The Uniform Probate Code Model, National Perspectives on Connecticut Probate Courts, New Haven, Connecticut, October 2003

American Association of Homes and Services for Aging Annual Meeting and Exposition, Caregiving Town Hall Meeting Participant, Denver, Colorado, October 2003

Everything You Wanted to Know About Elder Law Without Going to Law School, 10th Annual Interdisciplinary Institute, University of Denver Law School, March 2004 and March 2005

Current Law Update: Colorado Law of Wills, Trusts, and Fiduciary Administration, CBA/CLE, Denver, Colorado, July 2005

The New Massachusetts UPC, Massachusetts CLE, Boston, Massachusetts, March 2009

The Irrevocable Family Trust - When Grandma Gets Dragged into the Divorce, Family Law Institute, Domestic Relations Law in Times of Economic & Family Crisis, Breckenridge, Colorado, August 2009

Will Contests - Relaxing the Formalities of Execution, Trial of a Will Contest, CBA Trust and Estate Law, Elder Law, Solo/Small Firm, and Litigation Sections, Denver, Colorado, August 2009

Current Law Update: Colorado Law of Wills, Trusts, and Fiduciary Administration, CBA/CLE, Denver, Colorado, October 2009

Uniform Probate Code Implementation - a Judge’s Perspective, Massachusetts Judicial Conference, Boston, Massachusetts, May 2011

Trusts in Divorce Property Divisions, Continuing Legal Education in Colorado, Denver, Colorado, September 2011 and February 2014

Recognitions

Best Lawyers in America
(1987 to Present)

Colorado Super Lawyers
(2006 to Present)

Philanthropic Leadership Award
The Denver Foundation, 2008

Citation
National College of Probate Judges (NCPJ) re: Representation of NCPJ in United States Supreme Court Case of Estate of Marshall (Probate Exception to Federal Jurisdiction), April 2007

Richard Doyle Award of Excellence
Colorado Bar Association/Continuing Legal Education, December 2003

Treat Award for Excellence in Probate
National College of Probate Judges, 1994