Free event! No MCLE.

Bewildered by Prop.19, so are Assessors. Larry Stone, Silicon Valley’s Assessor, along with Assessment Professionals will discuss the status of implementation by Assessors and the Board of Equalization, including state of urgency legislation.

Moderator: David Ginsborg.

Speaker: Larry Stone, Santa Clara County Assessor

Silicon Valley’s Assessor Larry Stone was first elected Santa Clara County Assessor in 1994 and overwhelmingly re-elected six times by the residents of Santa Clara County, which stretches north to Palo Alto, south to Gilroy, and includes San Jose, the “Capital of Silicon Valley.”

Past President of the California Assessors’ Association (CAA) he was one of five Assessors to a CAA ad-hoc committee responsible for uniform implementation of Proposition 19.

As Assessor, Stone has overseen remarkable improvements to streamline office operations, eliminate backlogs, and achieve higher levels of public service, all while consistently operating substantially under budget. The State Board of Equalization acknowledged his office as one of the best-managed assessors’ operations in California.

Stone has been a financial manager on Wall Street and co-founded a successful Bay Area real estate investment and development firm. He served 16 years as a council member and mayor of Sunnyvale.

Stone also has been an active and effective civic leader in many fields ranging from the arts, to education, to the environment. A native of Seattle, he has an MBA from the University of Washington. He and his wife Carmen have lived in Sunnyvale since 1970, where they raised three sons.

Speaker: Malia M. Cohen, Member of the California State Board of Equalization

A native San Franciscan and a product of the San Francisco Unified public school system, is a rising star and nationally recognized policy maker.

She serves as a Member of the California State Board of Equalization (BOE), California’s elected tax commission.  Elected to the Board of Equalization in November 2018, she was the first African American woman to serve on the Board and as Chair of the Board in its 142-year history.

As the BOE Board Member for District 2, she represents 10 million constituents from as far north as Del Norte County to as for south of Santa Barbara County.  Her district is home to the ancient redwoods, the wine industry in Napa County, the innovation capitol of the world in the Bay Area and Silicon Valley, and the beautiful and breathtaking Pacific Coast.

Prior to being elected to the Board of Equalization, Board Member Cohen served as President of the City and County of San Francisco Board of Supervisors. She was first elected to the Board of Supervisors in 2010 and re-elected in 2014.

She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Fisk University, a historically Black university in Nashville, Tennessee, and a Masters in Science in Public Policy & Management from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

She and her husband, Attorney Warren A. Pulley, reside in San Francisco.  They are the proud parents of their daughter, Madison Victoria Pulley.

Speaker: Richard Moon, Tax Counsel IV in the Legal Division of the Board of Equalization

Richard is a Tax Counsel IV in the Legal Division of the Board of Equalization where he handles various property tax matters. Prior to joining the government, Richard worked in the private sector, concentrating on multistate income and sales tax issues. Richard is a graduate of the University of Chicago and the Boston University School of Law.

Speaker: Nora Galvez, Acting Chief of Standards Services and Exemption for the Santa Clara County Assessor’s Office

Nora is the Acting Chief of Standards Services and Exemption for the Santa Clara County Assessor’s Office.  She joined the Assessor’s office in 2000, acquiring almost 21 years of experience evaluating Change in Ownership issues.  Nora has served in the office as a trainer for numerous Change in Ownership topics.  She also serves as a member and trainer for the California Assessors’ Administrative Services Association (CAASA) Education Committee and she is the current Past President for CAASA.  Prior to joining the Assessor’s Office, she had five years of experience in real estate transactions working for a title company.  

Nora is a graduate of San Jose State University with a degree in Psychology and Child Development.  She earned her Paralegal certification in 2010 and her Assessment Analyst Certification in July 2016.

Nora says that change in ownership issues are some of her passions!  She enjoys working on issues involving the Legal Entity Ownership Program (LEOPs,) joint tenancy matters, and trusts.

In her free time, Nora loves volunteering and helping others through her church.

Speaker: Ellen McKissock, Chair of the Trusts and Estates Section for the California Lawyers Association

Ellen McKissock is a trial lawyer and Co-chair of Hopkins & Carley’s Trust & Estate Litigation Practice.

With more than 30 years of experience, Ellen has litigated hundreds of cases covering every aspect of trust and estate litigation, including:

• Financial elder abuse
• Invalidating marriages
• Will and trust contests
• Dissolution of partnerships
• Recovery of trust assets
• Removal of trustees
• Complex accountings

In addition to numerous trials, Ellen has represented clients at the appellate level and has three published opinions.

Ellen is currently a Fellow of the American College of Trust & Estate Counsel (ACTEC).  She is current Chair of TEXCOM, the Trusts & Estates Section of the California Lawyers Association, and assisted in drafting AB 328 which amended Probate Code Sections 21380, 21382, and 21611 to protect elders from predatory marriages. She was Editor in Chief of The Quarterly. Ellen is also a respected speaker and author, giving several seminars a year throughout California.