Tuesday, September 12, 2006
Page 3
Retired Superior Court Judge Arnold Gold Receives 2006 Treat Award
By TINA BAY, Staff Writer
Retired Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Arnold H. Gold has received the 2006 Treat Award for Excellence from the National College of Probate Judges, a member of the organization’s executive committee said yesterday.
Gold, who retired from the bench in 2001 and was nominated for the honor this spring, accepted the award last Friday at a banquet for the organization in Anchorage, Alaska, the board member told the MetNews.
The judge was unavailable for comment, as he was reportedly on a cruise that was part of the organization’s activities.
Amy Newman, president of Alternative Resolution Centers, for whom Gold now serves as a private judge, praised the award committee’s selection.
“We’re delighted that Judge Gold has been chosen to receive this prestigious award and that he is being recognized on a national level,” she said in a release.
Named after Judge William W. Treat, founder and president emeritus of the National College of Probate Judges, the Treat Award since 1978 has recognized one individual each year who has made a significant contribution to the improvement of the law or judicial administration in probate or related fields. The award includes a cash grant.
Newman said ARC considers Gold to be one of California’s most successful probate mediators.
“Since he joined ARC, Judge Gold has achieved a truly impressive settlement rate. Litigants respect his expertise and his case evaluations and know he is willing to work as long as it takes to reach a settlement,” she remarked.
Gold, 74, was appointed to the Los Angeles Superior Court in 1988 by then-Gov. George Deukmejian.. He served as supervising probate judge, as chair of the court’s Rules Committee, and as a member of the Executive Committee. In addition to probate matters, Gold handled fast track civil trials and family law disputes.
After handling scores of successful probate mediations and over 50 long cause estate, trust conservatorship and guardianship trials as a jurist, Gold has conducted 360 probate mediations since his retirement, according to ARC.
The former bench officer presently remains an active member of numerous judicial and bar associations and related committees. He serves as an advisor to the Judicial Council Probate and Mental Health Advisory Committee, and is a former chair of the Probate and Mental Health Committee of the California Judges Association
He also frequently lectures on civil, family law and probate topics for numerous professional organizations including the Los Angeles County Bar Assn., the Beverly Hills Bar Assn., and the State Bar.
Gold’s published work includes several chapters for CEB resources, materials for lawyers and judges on references to referees, and handbooks on depositions and probate practice.
Prior to becoming a judge, Gold practiced probate and family law and litigated civil cases in Los Angeles with Pachter, Gold & Schaffer from 1970 to 1988, and as a solo practitioner in Beverly Hills for the preceding nine years. He was an associate with the local offices of Loeb and Loeb from 1956-1961, after serving for one year as a law clerk for then-state Supreme Court Justice John W. Shenk.
Gold was admitted to the State Bar in 1955. He earned his law degree in 1955 from Stanford University Law School, where he also received his undergraduate degree, cum laude, in 1953.
Copyright 2006, Metropolitan News Company