News & Analysis as of September 20, 2024

Estate Planning › Appeals

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Estate Planning is a process where individuals prepare or plan for the settlement of their personal affairs in the event of incapacitation or death. Estate plans typically include provisions relating to the disposition of assets, guardianship of minor children, and appointment of representatives to make medical and financial decisions. Effective estate planning can decrease tax liability and facilitate the probate process. less -

Court Affirmed A Judgment For An Estate Because The Personal Representative Participated In The Case

Winstead PC on 9/19/2024

In Charles v. Est. of Kornbacher, the estate sued a defendant regarding the ownership of real property. No. 01-23-00125-CV, 2024 Tex. App. LEXIS 2947 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st Dist.] April 30, 2024, no pet. history)....more

LePage v. Mobile Infirmary Association: Alabama Wrongful Death of a Minor Statute Applies to Cryogenically Preserved Embryos

Sullivan & Worcester on 2/28/2024

Carole M. Bass and Cara Koss co-authored this article. The authors have long raised as an issue the impact personhood legislation could have on assisted reproduction and, by extension, on estate and trust administration...more

Court Rules That There Is No Right To A Jury Trial In A Trust Modification Suit And Affirms The Modifications Of A Trust

Winstead PC on 10/30/2023

First Appellate Decision. In In re Troy S. Poe Trust, a co-trustee of a trust filed suit to modify the trust to increase the number of trustees and change the method for trustees to vote on issues as well as other...more

Court Reversed Summary Judgment And Held That There Was A Fact Issue On Whether The Testator Had Mental Capacity To Execute A Will

Winstead PC on 10/3/2023

In Castello v. Ex’r of the Est. of Castello, the decedent died leaving a will that left his property to his wife “for life” and then to his three children by a prior marriage. No 03-22-00012-CV 2023 Tex. App. LEXIS 4454 (Tex....more

Court Applies Harmless Error Rule to Validate Will Benefiting Ex-Fiancé

Downey Brand LLP on 6/27/2023

Typewritten wills in California generally require the signatures of two witnesses to be found valid, but the harmless error rule can save the day. Probate Code section 6110(c)(2), as recently discussed, provides that a will...more

Court Affirmed Removal Of An Administratrix For Gross Mismanagement

Winstead PC on 5/1/2023

In In the Est. of Lemme, an administratrix of an estate hired her boyfriend to do legal work. No. 07-21-00300-CV, 2022 Tex. App. LEXIS 8829 (Tex. App.—Amarillo December 1, 2022, no pet. history). ...more

Tax Court Confirms Constitutionality of Minnesota Estate Tax

Lathrop GPM on 1/13/2023

On December 12, 2022, the Minnesota Tax Court released an opinion in Estate of Anderson v. Commissioner of Revenue addressing the constitutionality of Minnesota’s estate tax structure as applied to an estate that consisted...more

Appellate Court Affirms Findings That Decedent’s Will Was Not A Product Of Undue Influence And That He Had Mental Capacity

Winstead PC on 10/3/2022

In In re Estate of Hogan, a father executed a new will, leaving his estate to one of his sons (Harold) and disinheriting his other son (Gary). No. 11-20-00170-CV, 2022 Tex. App. LEXIS 3863 (Tex. App.—Eastland June 9,...more

Personal Planning Strategies - July 2022

Proskauer Rose LLP on 7/26/2022

With Recent Court Decision, Out-of-State Owners of New York Houses Can Breathe Easier - A recent New York appellate court ruling has major implications for individuals who own a house in New York State but do not consider...more

Probate & Fiduciary Litigation Newsletter - April 2022

Goulston & Storrs PC on 4/20/2022

This newsletter is intended to keep readers informed about developments in probate and fiduciary litigation in Massachusetts and New York. Our lawyers are at the forefront of this area of the law, shaping how it is handled in...more

Appellate Court Held That It Did Not Have Jurisdiction Over A Probate Court’s Order Denying A Motion For Summary Judgment And...

Winstead PC on 3/28/2022

In Janine v. McAfee, parties fought over who should be the administrator of an estate. No. 01-20-00717-CV, 2021 Tex. App. LEXIS 10101 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st Dist.] December 23, 2021, no pet. history). ...more

UK Court Clarifies Important Issues Relating to Proprietary Interests in Trust Assets

Latham & Watkins LLP on 2/14/2022

The Court of Appeal ruled that losing proprietary rights under foreign law could invalidate personal claims against third party recipients of trust assets. On 27 January 2022, the UK Court of Appeal unanimously dismissed...more

Court Held That The Estate Planning Privity Rule Barred Granddaughter’s Claim For Malpractice Against Her Grandmother’s Attorneys...

Winstead PC on 2/14/2022

In Flores v. Branscomb PC, before her death, the decedent hired counsel to prepare a new will. No. 13-18-00411-CV, 2021 Tex. App. LEXIS 4612 (Tex. App.—Corpus Christi June 10, 2021, no pet. history)....more

The Court of Appeals Takes a Look at an Undue Influence Claim from a Non-Jury Trial

Farrell Fritz, P.C. on 1/24/2022

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced litigants to wrestle with the dilemma of waiting for a jury trial or moving forward more expeditiously by way of a bench trial. Recently, the Appellate Division, Fourth Department, and the...more

Indiana Court of Appeals Invalidates Trust for Failure to Identify Trust Beneficiary

Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP on 1/20/2022

Recently, the Indiana Court of Appeals decided the case of Wilson v. Wilson. The case involved the last will and testament (“Will”) of decedent Terrel Wilson, Sr. (“Terrel Sr.”), which purported to create a trust....more

Blast from the Past – Trusts Subject to Medi-Cal Reimbursement

Downey Brand LLP on 1/19/2022

We begin the year with a case, Riverside County Public Guardian v. Snukst (2022) ___ Cal.App.5th ___, involving an elder with dementia who received Medi-Cal benefits. The case, a blast from the past, illustrates how the...more

Minnesota Court of Appeals Upholds Settlor’s Intent, Rejects Beneficiary’s Petition to Modify Trust and Receive Attorney Fees

Lathrop GPM on 1/6/2022

In an opinion released last week, the Minnesota Court of Appeals rejected a petition to modify the terms of a trust to allow for the early distribution of trust assets to the beneficiaries. The court also denied the...more

Court Holds That Probate Court Had Jurisdiction Over Inter Vivos Trust Dispute And That A Beneficiary Waived A Complaint About A...

Winstead PC on 1/3/2022

In Goepp v. Comerica Bank & Trust, N.A., the settlors created inter vivos trusts and their three children were the remainder beneficiaries. No. 03-19-00485-CV, 2021 Tex. App. LEXIS 5461 (Tex. App.—Austin July 9, 2021, no pet....more

Another Broad Reading of the Elder Abuse Act Protects Seniors

Downey Brand LLP on 12/29/2021

We “ring” in 2022 with a recent case that again shows the long reach of statutory financial elder abuse claims in California trust and estate litigation. In Ring v. Harmon (2021) ___ Cal.App.5th ___, the Court of Appeal...more

Court Affirms Decision That Executor Applicant Was Unsuitable For That Position

Winstead PC on 11/19/2021

In In the Estate of Johnson, an applicant to be an independent administrator appealed a court’s decision to not appoint him due to his being unsuitable. No. 02-20-00133-CV, 2021 Tex. App. LEXIS 7138 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth...more

Texas Court Does Not Have Personal Jurisdiction Over A Trustee Of A Trust With Texas Timber Rights

Winstead PC on 8/30/2021

In JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. v. Campbell, a member of a limited partnership sued other partners, including a trustee of a trust, to dissolve the partnership. No. 09-20-00161-CV, 2021 Tex. App. LEXIS 5001 (Tex. App.—Beaumont...more

How Can the Same Right Create 2 Separate Property Interests?

Holland & Knight LLP on 7/26/2021

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) can file a lien and levy on any and all of a taxpayer's property (and rights to property) regardless of how the property is held or titled. 26 U.S.C. § 6321. Whether the item is a taxpayer's...more

Court Holds That An Executor May Breach Duties In Making A Non-Pro Rata Distribution Of Assets

Winstead PC on 6/30/2021

In In re Estate of Stewart, siblings filed claims regarding the administration of their father’s estate. No. 04-20-00103-CV, 2021 Tex. App. LEXIS 3897 (Tex. App.—San Antonio May 19, 2021, no pet. history)....more

Texas Supreme Court Holds That A Beneficiary May Not Accept Any Benefit From A Will And Then Later Challenging The Will

Winstead PC on 6/1/2021

In In the Estate of Johnson, a child of the decedent accepted over $143,000 from the decedent’s estate and then decided to challenge the will due to mental capacity and undue influence. No. 20-0424, 2021 Tex. LEXIS 426 (Tex....more

Court Affirmed Trial Court’s Reformation Of A Will To Omit The Word “Personal” From The Term “Property” In A Residuary Clause

Winstead PC on 3/15/2021

In Odom v. Coleman, a brother and a sister sued each other regarding their father’s estate. No. 01-19-00669-CV, 2020 Tex. App. LEXIS 9551 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st Dist.] December 8, 2020, no pet.)....more

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Estate Planning › Appeals

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