The Law Offices of Steven M. Simrin provides legal services in the areas of tax representation, probate (wills and trusts), and conservatorships.  We are dedicated to providing our clients with high-quality legal services along with the personalized attention that should be expected of a small law firm. Conveniently located near Jack London Square in Oakland, we serve clients from Oakland, Berkeley and the entire San Francisco Bay Area.

We provide the following legal services to our clients:

•Experienced and aggressive tax representation

      o  IRS (income tax, payroll tax, estate tax, excise tax)

      o  California Franchise Tax Board (income tax, use tax)

      o  California Board of Equalization (payroll tax, sales tax, excise tax, use tax, property tax)

      o  California Employment Development Department (payroll tax)

      o  Local tax authorities (property tax, sales tax, all other local taxes)

•Probate
•Trusts
•Conservatorships

For all of our clients, we offer more than 12 years experience as both an attorney and a certified public accountant.  We promise to always take the time to clearly explain to you what your options are.  We also promise to provide you with the most attentive and professional legal services structured to address your unique needs.

Law Offices of Steven M. Simrin
318 Harrison Street Suite 102
Oakland, CA 94607
Tel. (510) 444-4430

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday denied an appeal by Pacific Investment Management Co challenging class-action certification for a lawsuit alleging the world's largest bond fund manager tried to corner a market for U.S. Treasury note futures.

A U.S. appeals court in Chicago upheld a judge's ruling that certified as a class more than 1,000 investors who seek more than $600 million in damages.

Pimco, a Newport Beach, California-based unit of the German insurer Allianz SE appealed to the Supreme Court, but the justices turned down the appeal in a brief order without any comment.

The lawsuit accused Pimco of boosting its percentage stake in futures contracts on some 10-year Treasury notes to 42 percent from 12 percent over a two-week span in the spring of 2005. The relevant contracts traded on the Chicago Board of Trade.

In its appeal to the Supreme Court, Pimco argued that class-action status should not have been granted because some plaintiffs did not lose money and the class suffered from serious conflicts of interest that precluded certification.

The Obama Administration requested that the U.S. Supreme Court let the government seek damages of around $300 billion from the tobacco industry through an appeal of the landmark 2006 federal racketeering case that was earlier rejected by the courts.

Last Friday, the U.S. government asked the Supreme Court to overturn parts of the racketeering case and is now seeking $280 billion in forfeited profits and $10 billion to fund campaigns to cut the level of smoking in the United States.

R.J. Reynolds, Inc. Lorillard Inc. and other major players in the industry simultaneously filed paperwork asking the court to overturn the racketeering conviction or return it to an appellate court for review.

While it could be at least nine months before the court decides where to take the case, investors don’t have to look too far back to see the consequences of the uncertainty. The 2006 case sent shares in the sector sharply lower, as investors feared steep fines.

The tobacco company may have lost the lawsuit in 2006, but it avoided crippling monetary damages. Judge Kessler’s move to consider requiring tobacco companies to give up some $280 billion in profits was overruled after the industry filed a pretrial motion with an appeals court.

Airgas Inc urged its shareholders on Monday to reject a $5.1 billion tender offer from larger rival Air Products & Chemicals Inc, arguing the offer substantially undervalues the industrial gas supplier.

The move was widely expected, and Airgas investors now have until April 9 to formally consider Air Products's $60-per-share cash offer.

However even if a majority of Airgas shareholders sell their shares, the Airgas board still has a "poison pill" in place to keep any one party from acquiring too large a stake.

Allentown, Pennsylvania-based Air Products took the bid hostile earlier this month by launching the tender after being privately rejected twice by Airgas's board.

If successful, Air Products would become the biggest industrial gas company in North America, allowing Air Products to gain substantial benefits from the economy's resurgence after the recession abates.

Altria Group Inc's Philip Morris USA unit and two co-defendants filed to overturn the verdict, while the government argues the appeals court wrongly denied the disgorgement of billions of dollars in ill-gotten gains by the tobacco industry.

In May, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia affirmed a trial judge's verdict against the cigarette makers, finding they violated federal anti-racketeering laws by conspiring to lie about the dangers of smoking.

If the Supreme Court agrees to take the case, it could redefine the reach of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act.

Besides Philip Morris, maker of Marlboro cigarettes, the appeals court ruling was challenged Friday by Lorillard Inc, home of the Kent and Newport brands, and the R.J. Reynolds Tobacco unit of Reynolds American Inc, maker of Camel and other cigarettes.

Saudi Arabia could soon allow women lawyers to appear in court, though apparently only representing other women, the country's justice minister said in comments published on Sunday.

Justice Minister Mohammed al-Issa said the ministry is drafting new rules to permit female lawyers to argue family cases, which could be passed soon, Saudi newspapers reported.

The women would be able to represent women in marriage, divorce, custody and other family cases, the newspapers said.

Female lawyers in the kingdom, where strict Islamic doctrine and shariah law have enforced separation of genders, can currently work only inside the women's sections of law and government offices, where they do not come into contact with men.

The Berenstein, Moore, Heffernan, Moeller & Johnson L.L.P. law firm announce that Karrie R. Hruska has become a partner in the Sioux City firm. Hruska joined the firm in November 2008 after 10 years in private practice in Sioux City.

She concentrates her practice in the areas of probate law, estate planning, litigation, business and family law. Hruska earned her undergraduate degree from the University of South Dakota and her Juris Doctorate Degree from the University of Iowa College of Law.

While at Iowa she was selected to be a member of the Stephenson Trial Advocacy Team. She is currently licensed to practice law in Iowa and South Dakota, and is a member of the Iowa Bar Association, the South Dakota Bar Association and the Woodbury County Bar Association.

She also has served on the executive board of the Young Lawyers Division of the Iowa State Bar Association and has served on the Mock Trial Committee of the Iowa State Bar Association since 2000.