Many of my JDSUPRA postings, a full catalog of which may be found below, are about the doctrinal incoherence that is being inflicted on the institution of the trust by legislative intrusions into equity doctrine, intrusions...more
Background on Purpose Trusts - The private discretionary trust is the most widely known form of trust where trustees are given a fund of money to manage and distribute amongst certain named or described beneficiaries who...more
In 1998, Elizabeth died leaving a will that contained a trust for the benefit of her niece, Jean, for her life. Upon Jean’s death, the remaining trust assets were to pass to her other niece, Dorothy. Both Jean and Dorothy...more
In re Esther Kratzer Revocable Trust & In re Wendell Kratzer Revocable Trust, Docket Nos 357860, 357861 (Mich Ct App Mar 23 2023) (unpublished). Wendell and Esther Kratzer, husband and wife, had four children including...more
This blog has devoted a lot of real estate to the use of anti-SLAPP motions in California trust and estate litigation. Though the courts’ treatment of such motions is varied and oftentimes unpredictable, Californians can...more
Following our series on how to serve and protect yourself as a trustee for your family, it only makes sense to talk about the other side of the equation ─ being a beneficiary. Unlike trustees, who have very specific fiduciary...more
A Delaware bankruptcy court recently held that Texas’s “trust fund doctrine” remains applicable for companies that have not availed themselves of Texas’s formal dissolution process. Nonetheless, fiduciary claims by a...more
It is common practice when a trust is established for the economic settlor to provide a letter of wishes, addressed to the trustees of the trust, setting out their wishes with respect to the administration of the trust. For...more
Many family member trustees are uncertain about whether and to what extent they can use trust assets to obtain legal representation. For example, when two parents choose their daughter, upon their incapacity or death, to...more
Under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, in 2020 each person may transfer up to $11,580,000 without incurring a gift or estate tax. This generous exemption amount will sunset at the end of 2025, which means that in 2026, the...more
Many clients create an estate plan, then put the documents safely away, until they are needed. However, they have forgotten to complete one final important step. Trust funding is the most overlooked estate planning tool....more
In California, the Attorney General oversees charitable trusts. This responsibility includes bringing legal actions against trustees who breach their fiduciary duties. Government Code section 12598 provides that the...more
On June 5, 2018, the Medicare Boards of Trustees (the Board) released its annual report on the fiscal condition of the Medicare trust funds: the Hospital Insurance (HI) trust fund, which supports Medicare Part A, and the...more
If you are the trustee of a non-UK trust which has UK assets or UK sources of income, you need to take action before 5 March 2018 or face potential civil and even criminal penalties. The EU's Fourth Anti-Money Laundering...more
Medicare Trustees released their annual report finding that the Medicare trust fund will be exhausted in 2026, two years later than was predicted last year; over the past two weeks, as Washington has investigated the Internal...more
A May 31, 2013 report from the Trustees of the Federal Hospital Insurance and Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Funds projects that the Medicare Hospital Insurance Trust Fund will remain solvent through FY 2026,...more