David F. Johnson presented his paper titled “Trustee’s Ability To Retain And Compensate Attorneys In Texas” to the Texas State Bar’s 48th Annual Advanced Estate Planning and Probate Course on June 13, 2024, in Houston, Texas....more
In Mendell v. Scott, a decedent had a trust that named him as primary beneficiary, and upon his death, the trust would continue for a niece provided that she did not commit a prohibited act. No. 01-20-00578-CV, 2023 Tex. App....more
This update will address the following issues: whether a party has a right to jury trial in trust modification and other similar actions, what are the standards for pretrial receivership and injunctive relief in trust...more
11/16/2023
/ Attorney's Fees ,
Beneficiaries ,
Continuing Legal Education ,
Estate Claims ,
Estate Planning ,
Fiduciary ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Injunctive Relief ,
Jury Trial ,
Modification ,
Probate ,
Receivership ,
Release Agreements ,
Right to a Jury ,
Trust Administration ,
Trustees ,
Trusts ,
Webinars ,
Wills
In Banister v. Banister, the trial court found that a wife breached her fiduciary duty to the husband, committed fraud on the community estate, and wasted community assets. No. 03-21-00517-CV, 2023 Tex. App. LEXIS 4063 (Tex....more
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
In Wells Fargo, N.A. v. Clower, a trustee filed suit for declaratory relief regarding its discretion to make income distributions. No. 02-20-00058-CV, 2021 Tex. App. LEXIS 7675 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth September 16, 2021, no...more
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
David F. Johnson presented his paper on “Remedies for Breach of Fiduciary Duty Claims” to the Tarrant County Probate Bar Association’s Litigation Seminar on August 7, 2020. This presentation covered pre-trial remedies such as...more
In Bethany v. Bethany, a party filed a motion to remove his brother as executor of their mother’s estate. No. 03-19-00532-CV, 2020 Tex. App. LEXIS 2350 (Tex. App.—Austin March 20, 2020, no pet.)....more
Areas of Discussion:
- In this Presentation, we will discuss the following:
- Duty of loyalty;
- Authority for trustee compensation;
- Factors for reasonable compensation;
- Other issues arising from trustee...more
9/27/2019
/ Asset Management ,
Attorney's Fees ,
Beneficiaries ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Duty of Loyalty ,
Duty to Disclose ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Reasonable Compensation ,
Settlors ,
Trustees ,
Trusts ,
TX Supreme Court
In Estate of Luce, the court of appeals affirmed a trial court’s admitting a will to probate where the decedent did not personally sign it and only communicating his desires by blinking. No. 02-17-00097-CV, 2018 Tex. App....more
In In the Interest of K.K.W., an ex-wife sued an ex-husband and the trustee of a trust that they created for breaches of fiduciary duty and sought to remove the trustee, among other claims, arising out of the trustee’s...more
10/15/2018
/ Attorney's Fees ,
Beneficiaries ,
Breach of Duty ,
Estate Planning ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Reversal ,
Standing ,
Summary Judgment ,
Trust Remainder Beneficiaries ,
Trustees ,
Trusts
In In re Cousins, a trustee filed a mandamus proceeding to challenge a trial court’s order denying his motion to pay his attorney’s fees from the trust. No. 12-18-00104-CV, 2018 Tex. App. LEXIS 3930 (Tex. App.—Tyler May 31,...more
In Robins v. Robins, an ex-wife sued her ex-husband for breaching fiduciary duties regarding the sale of their former marital residence. No. 02-16-00285-CV, 2018 Tex. App. LEXIS 3534 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth May 17, 2018). ...more
In In the Interest of K.K.W., a father and mother, who were settlors, filed competing claims regarding the interpretation of a trust for their son. No. 05-16-00795-CV, 2018 Tex. App. LEXIS 2174 (Tex. App.—Dallas March 27,...more
In re Nunu, an estate beneficiary sued the executrix to have her removed due to alleged breaches of fiduciary duty and also sought to have the court refuse to pay her attorneys in representing her in a removal action and/or...more
In Harun v. Rashid, two individuals started a restaurant business; one operated the business and the other financed it. No. 05-16-00584-CV, 2018 Tex. App. LEXIS 231 (Tex. App.—Dallas January 9, 2018, no pet. history)....more
2/12/2018
/ Actual Damages ,
Appeals ,
Attorney's Fees ,
Breach of Contract ,
Breach of Duty ,
Damages ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Oral Contracts ,
Partnership Interests ,
Partnerships ,
Resorts & Restaurants
In In re Cokinos, Boisien & Young, a representative of an estate of a deceased attorney sought documents from a law firm related to an alleged agreement to share fees. No. 05-16-01331-CV, 2017 Tex. App. LEXIS 6911 (Tex....more
In Wells Fargo v. Militello, a trustee appealed a judgment from a bench trial regarding a beneficiary’s claims for breach of fiduciary duty, negligence, and fraud. No. 05-15-01252-CV, 2017 Tex. App. LEXIS 5640 (Tex....more
In Eng v. Kolbe, a mother sued her daughter for abusing a power of attorney document. No. 03-15-00409-CV, 2017 Tex. App. LEXIS 2680 (Tex. App.—Austin March 30, 2017). The daughter was assisting her aging parents with their...more
In Holliday v. Weaver, clients obtained a fee forfeiture award against an attorney for breach of fiduciary duty related to the improper use of settlement proceeds. No. 05-15-00490-CV, 2016 Tex. App. LEXIS 7264 (Tex....more
In In re Estate of Williams, attorney Don Ford was appointed an administrator of an estate and hired himself as an attorney for the estate. No. 05-15-00392-CV, 2016 Tex. App. LEXIS 5990 (Tex. App.—Dallas June 6, 2016, no pet....more
In Courtade v. Estrada, Estrada created an inter vivos irrevocable trust and deeded real estate into the trust. No. 02-14-00295-CV, 2016 Tex. App. LEXIS 3105 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth March 24, 2016, no pet. history). Two days...more
In In re Estate of Kam, an elderly man executed a new will to omit any gift to one son after the man discovered that his life insurance had been altered to name his son as the sole beneficiary. No. 08-14-00016-CV, 2016 Tex....more
In Estate of Richardson, a remainder beneficiary of a trust filed a declaratory judgment action to declare that the trust would terminate five years after its creation. No. 14-12-00516-CV, 2013 Tex. App. LEXIS 2664 (Tex....more