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Court Reversed Summary Judgment On Whether A Person Was The Current Trustee And On Certain Modification Claims But Affirmed...

In Crossley v. Crossley, a plaintiff, who was the beneficiary of, or had the power to designate the beneficiary, in two trusts established by his mother, and he filed suit requesting that the court determine whether he or his...more

Texas Supreme Court Reverses Order In Trust Dispute Granting A Constructive Trust

In In re Trust A & Trust C, a beneficiary sued a trustee for breach of fiduciary duty and sought a constructive trust over assets that were transferred out of the trust. 690 S.W.3d 80 (Tex. 2024)....more

Court Affirmed The Removal Of An Executor For Gross Mismanagement

In Gordon v. Gordon, a couple created a revocable trust and named a friend, who provided financial advice, as successor trustee. No. 03-22-00454-CV, 2024 Tex. App. LEXIS 3611 (Tex. App.—Austin May 23, 2024, no pet. history)....more

Court Determined That A Deed Did Not Create A Trust

In Hilderbran v. Tex. SW. Council, Inc., parties donated a ranch via a 1930 deed to trustees for the Boy Scouts. No. 04-22-00736-CV, 2024 Tex. App. LEXIS 4390 (Tex. App.—San Antonio June 26, 2024, no pet. history)....more

Court Affirmed Dismissing Application To Probate Foreign Will

In In re Est. of De Chavez, a party filed an application to probate a Mexican will under Texas Estates Code Section 501.001 where the decedent was domiciled in Texas at the time of her death. No. 08-23-00072-CV, 2024 Tex....more

Court Affirmed Order Admitting Will To Probate Over Undue Influence Allegation And Over An Alleged Subsequent Holographic Codicil...

In Mynard v. Degenhardt, a decedent’s grandson offered a will to probate, and his aunt opposed that admission due to an alleged holographic codicil that allegedly revived a previous will. No. 14-22-00773-CV, 2023 Tex. App....more

Trustee’s Ability To Retain And Compensate Attorneys In Texas - Presentation

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

Court Construed Holographic Will To Devise Certain Property To A Granddaughter

In In re Estate of Martinez, a son appealed an order finding that his mother’s holographic will devised certain property to his daughter. No. 04-22-00708-CV, 2024 Tex. App. LEXIS 1258 (Tex. App.—San Antonio February 21, 2024,...more

Court Held That Estate Beneficiary Was Not Entitled To Jury Trial On Ratification Of Attorney’s Fees Agreement

In In re Est. of Ellard, a court ratified an executor signing a contingency fee agreement that was over 35% under section 351.152 of the Estates Code. No. 05-22-01149-CV, 2024 Tex. App. LEXIS 483 (Tex. App.—Dallas January 25,...more

Federal Court Dismisses Trust Dispute Due To There Not Being A Justiciable Controversy

In Frank v. Frank, co-trustees filed suit in federal court seeking declarations regarding their authority and potential liabilities. No. 3:22-cv-01757-M, 2023 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 226439 (N.D. Tex. December 20, 2023)....more

Court Affirmed Award Of Damages And Punitive Damages Against A Trustee Due To A Breach Of The Duty To Disclose, Held That A Trust...

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

Court Held That A Trust Terminated Upon The Primary Beneficiary’s Death And That The Trustee Did Not Have Authority To Accept New...

In Herbig v. Welch, a dispute arose around whether a trust terminated and whether certain transfers were valid. No. 01-22-00080-CV, 2023 Tex. App. LEXIS 4505 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st Dist.] June 27, 2023, no pet.)....more

Court Reverses Summary Judgments On The Alleged Exercise Of A Power Of Appointment, Disclaimer, And The Statute Of Limitations

In In re Estate of Wells, No. 12-23-00066-CV, 2023 Tex. App. LEXIS 8475 (Tex. App.—Tyler November 8, 2023, no pet. history). The testator left a will that created a trust for his wife and descendants, named his wife as the...more

Who Has The Duty To Prepare An Accounting When The Trustee Dies Or Becomes Incapacitated?

Beneficiaries of trust can face a difficult situation when the trustee of their trust either dies or becomes incapacitated. They may have many questions about the trust, such as what assets are in the trust or should be in...more

Texas Court Approves Accounting In An Estate Dispute

In Many v. Ridgely, a decedent’s son and daughter were beneficiaries of her estate. No. 03-21-00520-CV, 2023 Tex. App. LEXIS 8189 (Tex. App.—Austin October 27, 2023, no pet. history)...more

Colorado Case Holds That A Beneficiary’s Lifestyle Is Judged At The Time That The Settlor Dies Or When The Trust Becomes...

In Reece Trust v. Reece, a husband created a trust for his wife, and they then began divorce proceedings. No. 22CA1393, 2023 COA 89, 2023 Colo. App. LEXIS 1456 (Colo. App. September 28, 2023)....more

Court Held That The TCPA Does Not Apply To Claim Involving Texas Trust Code Section 113.28 And Suits Against Third Parties

In McCoy v. McCoy, trust beneficiaries sued the trustee for breaching his fiduciary duties by pursing claims against a third party when they instructed him not to do so. No. 08-23-00119-CV, 2023 Tex. App. LEXIS 6604 (Tex....more

[Webinar] Fiduciary Litigation Update 2022-2023 - December 19th, 10:00 am - 11:00 am CT

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

Courts Have Ordered Trial Courts To Grant TCPA Motions To Dismiss Based On No-Contest Clause Claims

The Texas Legislature created a statute to protect parties’ rights to freedom of speech and to petition the courts: the Texas Citizen’s Participation Act (TCPA). See Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code Ann. §§ 27.001-.011....more

Court Holds That TCPA Does Not Apply To Claim Involving Beneficiaries Opposing A Trustee’s Decision To Bring Claims Against Third...

In McCoy v. McCoy, trust beneficiaries (daughters) sued the trustee (father) for maintaining a claim against a third party (mother) after they notified him of their opposition under section 113.028 of the Texas Trust Code....more

Court Affirms Receivership In Trust Case Based Solely On An Alleged Failure To Disclose And Did Not Require Traditional Equitable...

In Moody Nat’l Bank v. Moody, a beneficiary sued a trustee regarding several allegations of breach of fiduciary duty. No. 14-21-00096-CV, 2022 Tex. App. LEXIS 7844 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.] October 25, 2022, pet....more

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

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 Holds That An Order Was Not Final For Appeal Where There Was Still An Issue Of Intestancy Remaining To Be Determined

In Estate of Long, the plaintiff sued trustees and alleged that she was the only child of the decedent and asserted a cause of action for a will contest and a cause of action for a declaratory judgment action in which she...more

[Webinar] Financial Services - Issues Regarding The Attorney-Client Privilege For Trustees In Texas - September 26th, 10:00 am -...

This presentation will take a detailed look at the attorney-client privilege between a trustee and its attorney, the scope of the privilege, the fiduciary exception that would allow beneficiaries to review communications and...more

Court Affirms Finding Of An Oral Trust And Breach Of Duty By The Trustee

In Ahlgren v. Ahlgren, plaintiffs sued a defendant alleging that the defendant was a trustee of an oral trust who breached duties by refusing to return certain property. No. 13-22-00029-CV, 2023 Tex. App. LEXIS 4182 (Tex....more

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