The San Diego County Bar Association and Wills for Heroes Program

A graduate of the Thomas Jefferson School of Law in San Diego, California, Terry Chucas has operated his local practice since 1990. In the past 14 years, he has focused on representing families in dependency court appeals. Terry Chucas also holds membership in professional organizations, such as the San Diego County Bar Association (SDCBA).

Since its establishment in 1899, the SDCBA has grown to become the largest law-related organization supporting legal professionals in the region. It offers its members multiple volunteering options and various educational and career advancement opportunities. One of them is the Wills for Heroes program, taking place every fall for one month.

In September 2022, the SDCBA announced its recurring participation in the Wills for Heroes Foundation’s eponymous program. The program provides free estate planning legal services to first responders (emergency medical technicians, firefighters, paramedics, and police officers) and licensed frontline healthcare workers (doctors, registered nurses, pharmacists, respiratory therapists, residents, and medical students), as well as their spouses or domestic partners.

For 10 consecutive years, through the Wills for Heroes program, the SDCBA has assisted eligible first responders and health care professionals in the greater San Diego area with preparing wills and other estate planning documentation, such as durable powers of attorney and advance health care directives, at no cost.

To qualify, participants must meet specific eligibility criteria. For example, their estate and net worth should be at most $500,000. Net worth encompasses cash, savings, stock and bonds, personal property, and retirement assets. The SDCBA matches each qualified participant with a volunteer licensed California attorney. The latter works individually with their matched participant to prepare the documents via conference calls or video meetings.

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Hockey in Sweden

An attorney with decades of experience assisting San Diego clients, Terry Chucas began overseeing parents and children on appeal in dependency court appeals in 2008. As someone who enjoys the arts as well as various sports, Terry Chucas played in the 1984 International Tournament In Sweden.

The NOTBF welcomes prospective members at least 33 years old who cannot compete with younger players but want to continue participating in the sport. It divides its teams into five age divisions: players from 33 to 42 years, 43 to 49 years, 50 to 56 years, 57 years and above, and classic. The first tournament took place in 1993, using a typical format where teams competed against teams in a shared pool, before the winners of each pool faced off to decide the winner of the event. Inspired by an alternate format used in Kindersley, Saskatchewan, in 1995, the organization changed its format so that the second, third, and fourth place winners in each pool also played against each other, so each age division comprised of two winning teams.

The NOTBF hosts its tournament in early August of the given event year. Teams meet at the designated location, which changes each year, over the course of four days.

The Importance of Developing a Personal Reading Culture

Terry Chucas is a graduate of the Thomas Jefferson School of Law, and he finished as part of the top students in his class. He practices as an independent attorney in San Diego, and one of his notable achievements is obtaining Martindale Hubbell’s highest rating as a legal practitioner. Terry Chucas enjoys reading as one of his hobbies.
A lot of wisdom and practical solutions for daily issues are found within the pages of a book. The knowledge and skill acquired by reading are astounding, and people must develop a healthy reading culture. One benefit of reading is that it expands one’s vocabulary. As an individual encounters new books, they are exposed to more words. This improved vocabulary, in turn, improves communication skills.
Reading exercises the brain and strengthens the mind. As one reads, there is a bit of thinking and imagination involved so that the reader can have an accurate mental picture that depicts the message the writer is passing across. Reading is done recreationally to ease an individual of the immediate environment’s stress and help the reader relax. It is a very healthy practice for the mental state of an individual.
Reading makes one see from a different perspective. Thus, an individual has a better understanding of the experiences of another party. The reader gains more empathy and strengthens interpersonal relationships. It is advised that every individual cultivates a healthy reading culture, especially for the younger generation. As a person, always prioritize gaining more wisdom, particularly through the book’s pages.

What Is a Martindale Hubbell Rating?

Terry Chucas holds a JD from Thomas Jefferson University School of Law and a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of British Columbia. A San Diego, California resident, Terry Chucas also holds Martindale-Hubbell’s highest rating, the AV Preeminent.

Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Ratings is the United States’ and Canada’s rating service for attorneys. Attorneys and judges use it to rate lawyers’ ethical and legal abilities. Once an attorney is reviewed using the service, they can receive an AV Preeminent, Distinguished, or Notable rating.

AV Preeminent is the highest rating an attorney can get. It shows that the attorney’s peers believe they have the highest level of professionalism, legal knowledge, and ethical standards. The Distinguished rating signifies that attorneys are widely respected by their peers and have high ethical standards. The Notable rating indicates that attorneys’ peers recognize their strong ethical standards.

Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Ratings have been used for over 140 years. Attorneys use the ratings to recommend the best lawyers to their clients, while individuals use the ratings to find credible attorneys to help them with their legal issues.

About Dependency Court in California

A graduate of the Thomas Jefferson School of Law and the University of British Columbia, Terry Chucas is an experienced family law attorney. Terry Chucas runs a law firm in San Diego, California, that focuses on dependency court appeals.

In California, dependency courts handle cases involving children who have been abused, neglected, or abandoned. These cases often start with a report to the police or a social worker that a parent is abusing or not taking proper care of their child. When a report of child neglect or abuse is made, a social worker investigates the claim. During the investigation, the social worker assesses the home environment and talks to the child and people who interact with the family.

If the investigation finds the claims of child abuse to be true, the social worker files a petition asking the dependency court to open a case to protect the child. If the social worker thinks the child is in immediate danger, the court can remove the child from the home.

If the court removes the child, the parents must file a petition within two days. During that time, the social worker places the child in a foster home, in the home of the other parent (if the parents are separated), or in the home of another relative.

After parents file the petition, the social worker tells the parents when the first hearing will take place in the dependency court. If the parents cannot afford a lawyer, the judge will appoint one for them in the first hearing.

Evita Exaggerates Eva Peron’s Relationship with Magaldi

Based in San Diego, California, Terry Chucas is an attorney who represents parents and children on appeal in dependency court appeals. In his free time, Terry Chucas enjoys reading and sports. His favorite musical is Evita.

Andrew Lloyd Webber’s celebrated musical Evita is based on the true story of Eva Perón. One element that the play exaggerates is the relationship between Eva and Agustín Magaldi, who is portrayed as a traveling singer of mediocre talent best known for discovering Eva. In reality, he was a highly regarded tango singer.

In the play, he is presented as the reason Evita goes to Buenos Aires in the first play. However, there is no proof that he was in the city during those times. Many historians believe Eva made up a relationship with Magaldi, even carrying around a fabricated letter of introduction from him, to bolster her career. The play also depicts Magaldi alive in 1944, even though he died in 1938.

Relative Rights in California Dependency Court

For more than three decades, attorney Terry Chucas has handled dependency appeals in San Diego and Los Angeles Counties. In this role, Terry Chucas represents children and their parents in cases involving child removal and reunification. Under California law, parents can elect for removed children to be placed under the care of relatives.

During a dependency case, extended family members and, in some cases, close friends can take on caregiver rights. California recognizes relatives with a close blood relation, including siblings, grandparents, and step-family members. The court must also notify close family members of a child’s removal within 30 days.

While the court is obligated to prioritize the placement of a removed child with related caregivers, this process can only occur if a willing individual comes forward before the first court hearing. Grandparents may be granted visitation rights, even if the child is not placed in their care. The court also generally recognizes the right of a child to maintain contact with their siblings.

An Overview of the Dependency Appeal Process

A San Diego lawyer with more than two decades of experience, Terry Chucas has represented clients in complex and high-conflict divorce cases in the Superior Court of San Diego. Terry Chucas holds an AV rating from Martindale Hubbell and currently works on appeals cases in dependency court.

Dependency court cases involve a situation where a child has been removed from a home due to abuse, neglect, or abandonment. Once the judge has made the dependency decision, an appellate court will hear any appeals. The appeals process entails a thorough review of all records from the trial court proceedings, which includes attorney-written briefs, hearings, and papers filed with the court.

The purpose of the review is to verify that no legal errors were made and that the court correctly understood the law. Because an appeal is not a new trial, an appellate court will generally not accept new evidence or allow new witnesses to testify. Once it has fully reviewed the case, the appellate court can affirm the trial court’s judgment, modify the judgment, or review the judgment either fully or in part. If the judgment is reversed, it returns to the trial court for retrial.

How a Case Proceeds to Dependency Court

An attorney working in San Diego, Terry Chucas represents parents and children in dependency court appeals. Terry Chucas has been working as an attorney for over three decades and has handled thousands of cases with hundreds of trial appearances.

Typically, abuse and neglect cases that end up in the dependency court start with a reported concern. Reports that a child is being neglected or abused are investigated by a social worker, who interviews the child and other people involved in the report. The social worker can choose one of several courses of action.

If no evidence of abuse is found, the social worker can decide to take no action. If necessary, the social worker connects the parents with free services to help them raise their children more effectively and safely.

Alternately, the social worker may choose to leave the child in the care of the parents and file a petition with the court. The court then opens a case to protect the child.

In extreme cases, the social worker decides to remove the child from the parents’ care immediately. The social worker places the child with another relative or in a foster home and files a petition with the court to open a case to protect the child.

Types of Hearings in Dependency Court

Terry Chucas of San Diego possesses decades of experience as a family attorney. Selected for the Dependency Appellate Panel for the Fourth District Court of Appeal (San Diego), Terry Chucas represents parents and children in dependency court appeals.

In dependency court proceedings, there are three common types of hearings. Detention court hearings happen when children are removed from their parents. At the hearing, the judge decides if it is safe for the children to go back into the care of their parents until the next hearing.

In a jurisdictional hearing, the judge hears the allegations against a parent whose child has been removed. If the judge determines that the child is unsafe with his or her parents, the child will become a dependent of the court.

In a dispositional hearing, a judge determines what, if anything, a parent needs to do to improve conditions for his or her child. Dispositional hearings are sometimes a part of the jurisdictional hearing.