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
The court in Freeport-McMoRan Oil & Gas LLC v. 1776 Energy Partners, LLC, 672 S.W.3d 391 (Tex. 2023) explained that “constructive trusts, being remedial in character, have the very broad function of redressing wrong or...more
What happens when a party dies in the middle of divorce? Under the law, the divorce action abates and the matter is over. In many cases, that is to the benefit of the surviving spouse because, in most cases, they would...more
Kittie started dating her daughter’s boyfriend Butch when he was 17 years old. They apparently dated for over twenty years, during which time Kittie purchased him a house to “use.” Butch later moved into the house with his...more
A couple of months ago, we examined NW Media Holdings Corp. v. IBT Media Inc., 2023 N.Y. Slip Op. 30875(U) (Sup. Ct., N.Y. County Mar. 22, 2023) (here), a case in which a lower court addressed the question whether the...more
A recent Ontario Court of Appeal (OCA) decision demonstrates the process an employer may be expected to undertake to recover employee-stolen funds when the proceeds of the fraud are traced to the assets of a “stranger to the...more
Lenders relying on a security interest in the accounts receivable of borrowers need to use caution when financing an intermediary business that could be subject to express or constructive trusts. If an intermediary business...more
Hudson v Hathway [2023] 2 W.L.R. 1227 ([2022]EWCA Civ 1648) is, even to a M&A lawyer such as myself, a particularly interesting case, despite being: (i) being decided at the end of last year, rather than just last week (my...more
Imagine these facts in a force majeure dispute (as presented in Point Energy Partners Permian LLC et al. v. MRC Permian Company). Lessee (MRC) invokes the force majeure provision of an oil and gas lease, asserting that...more
Synopsis In the recent judgment of Re Premier Assurance Group SPC Ltd. (in Official Liquidation) (unreported, Smellie C.J., Cause No. FSD 264 of 2020 (ASCJ), 7 April 2022), the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands sanctioned a...more
The legal concept of “conflicts of laws” is difficult, to say the least, confounding even seasoned litigators and judges, with bulky treatises and entire law school classes devoted to the subject....more
One of the tools available in the real estate litigation attorney’s toolbox is a lis pendens, also known as a notice of pending action. A lis pendens is a document recorded at the County Recorder’s Office providing...more
For the first time, the English court has granted permission for service of proceedings to be effected by non-fungible token (NFT) on the blockchain. The option to serve by NFT may be vital for victims of cryptocurrency fraud...more
The Hong Kong Court of First Instance case has denied declaratory and payment order relief sought by a company that had been the victim of cyber fraud because of issues with their pleadings. In the judgment, the Honourable...more
Sir Geoffrey Vos, the Master of the Rolls, wants English law to be at the forefront of developments relating to cryptoassets and smart contracts. In his thought-provoking foreword to the government-backed UK Jurisdictional...more
Regrettably, internet scams are on the rise in Hong Kong, consistent with the regrettable world trend. According to police, reports of cybercrimes in Hong Kong surged more than sevenfold during the past decade to 16,159...more
The Hong Kong court has reaffirmed its jurisdiction to grant vesting orders to assist victims of cyber fraud. The decision which is consistent with our recent success obtaining vesting orders for clients and two other 2021...more
What can you do when the parties you are suing are effectively judgment-proof? Oftentimes, plaintiffs will try to go after a defendant’s family member or related entity. ...more
In a recent post, I discussed three situations in which a debtor in bankruptcy might find itself dispossessed of assets that appeared to be property of the bankruptcy estate. This article expands on that general idea and...more
Nearly sixty years ago, Justice Hugo Black wrote that the Bankruptcy Act of 1898 “simply does not authorize a trustee to distribute other people’s property among a bankrupt’s creditors.” Pearlman v. Reliance Ins. Co., 371...more
This newsletter is intended to keep readers informed about developments in probate and fiduciary litigation in Massachusetts and New York. ...more
In Smoke Club Ltd and others v Network Rail Infrastructure Limited, the Upper Tribunal held that the claimants had an inferred periodic tenancy but no claim under proprietary estoppel. A lease of any kind was never agreed....more
The British Columbia decision Equustek Solutions Inc. v Jack highlights the difficult, time consuming, and expensive exercise that organizations may find themselves in when an employee misuses confidential information. In...more
November 2020 Interest Rates for GRATs, Sales to Defective Grantor Trusts, Intra-Family Loans and Split Interest Charitable Trusts AFRs - Certain federal interest rates increased slightly for November of 2020, while...more
Real Property Update - Condo Termination / Mandatory Arbitration: Unit owner could not pursue claims relating to condo termination for failure to comply with Florida Statutes section 718.117(16), which required unit...more