Choosing a Trustee: Navigating the Complexities and Key Considerations
Law School Toolbox Podcast Episode 509: Listen and Learn -- Third-Party Rights in Contracts (Part 2 - Beneficiaries)
Law School Toolbox Podcast Episode 508: Listen and Learn -- Third-Party Rights in Contracts (Part 1 - Rules)
Mamma Mia!: Common Estate Planning Issues for Blended Families
Once Removed Episode 38: The Legacy Mindset: What It Is and How to Build It
John Wick - What You Need To Know about the Corporate Transparency Act
Once Removed Episode 24: Expressing Goals and Intent for the Trust
Once Removed Episode 23: Naming Guardians for Minor Children
Once Removed Episode 22: Building Flexibility into the Estate Plan
Once Removed Episode 20: Helping a Beneficiary Purchase a Home
Life After Love Gone Wrong Podcast: Season 3, Episode 6 - Reshaping Your Legacy: Estate Planning After Your Divorce
Charitable Planning With Guest Stephanie Hood: Navigating Complex Rules and Traps for the Unwary
A Primer On Trusts - A Podcast with Janathan Allen
Once Removed Episode 13: It’s 5 o’Clock: Do You Know Where Your Will Is? A Lesson From Aretha Franklin
Once Removed Episode 12: SLATs and the Case of McKim vs. McKim
Once Removed Episode 11: Spousal Lifetime Access Trusts, or SLATs
Digital Planning Podcast Episode: Family Office Technology Solutions
Digital Planning Podcast Episode: The Uniform Electronic Estate Planning Documents Act
What is a self-proving affidavit?
The Importance of Beneficiary Designations
As an estate planning attorney practicing in Pennsylvania with a strong focus on special needs planning, I frequently work alongside personal injury counsel to address a critical but often overlooked consequence of...more
Welcome to the December 2024 edition of our UK Tax Round Up. This month has seen interesting decisions on the basis for rescission of an arrangement with adverse tax consequences, the treatment of a loan from an EBT, the tax...more
The September 2024 Section 7520 rate for use with estate planning techniques such as CRTs, CLTs, QPRTs and GRATs is 4.8%, a decrease from the August 2024 rate of 5.2%. The September applicable federal rate (“AFR”) for use...more
Brief Summary - The United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois held that a law firm representing the administrator in estate proceedings did not owe a duty to a beneficiary of the estate, and the...more
By means of a category two Public Trustee v Cooper application, in which Jeffrey Elkinson and Britt Smith of Conyers, led by Brian Green KC, acted for the successful plaintiffs, the first plaintiff as trustee, and the second...more
In Austin Trust Co. v. Houren, beneficiaries of a trust executed a family settlement agreement with the former trustee’s estate. No. 21-0355, 2023 Tex. LEXIS 285 (Tex. March 23, 2023)....more
On December 22, 2022, the Michigan Court of Appeals issued a fascinating opinion which dealt with protection of the rights of a charitable beneficiary under the decedent’s trust. Estate of Evelyn R Ragsdale v. Bishop, Docket...more
The United States Supreme Court recently answered an important question in Medicaid law: can a state Medicaid plan recover funds from a legal settlement involving a Medicaid beneficiary to pay for that beneficiary’s future...more
Courts greatly appreciate when parties settle their disputes by agreement. Settlements alleviate the courts of the burden of overwhelming caseloads, and further the public policy of encouraging parties to order their affairs...more
Over the past several weeks, I have released a series of articles on North Carolina Workers’ Compensation Death Claims. The series has addressed the following five overarching issues...more
In Moore v. Estate of Moore, a decedent’s wife claimed that she had an interest in an oil and gas lease formerly owned by her deceased husband. No. 07-20-00019-CV, 2021 Tex. App. LEXIS 6142 (Tex. App.—Amarillo July 30, 2021,...more
In Austin Trust Co. v. Houren, beneficiaries of a trust executed a family settlement agreement with the trustee and the former trustee’s estate. No. 14-19-00387-CV, 2021 Tex. App. LEXIS 1955 (Tex. App.—Houston March 16, 2021,...more
Trust and estate litigators, and mediators, are buzzing over a recent decision from the California Court of Appeal that validates mandatory mediation of trust disputes. In Breslin v. Breslin (Case No. B301382, decided...more
In Maxey v. Maxey, in a dispute that arose from the probate of an estate, two sisters mediated and reached a settlement agreement concerning the division of certain real property. No. 01-19-00078-CV, 2020 Tex. App. LEXIS...more
Sometimes court decisions make you say “huh?” In March 2019, the Iowa Court of Appeals made an interesting determination in the Estate of Newhall decision. A brother and sister had been in court for many years regarding...more
National Veterinary Associates (NVA), a large network of veterinary hospitals and clinics, has reportedly been the victim of a ransomware attack. According to the reports, NVA employs more than 2,600 veterinarians, with over...more
It is widely understood in California that inherited assets, unlike assets earned from labor, are the separate property of the receiving spouse. But what if the assets do not come directly from a parent and instead pass from...more
The poet, Robert W. Service once wrote that “a promise made is a debt unpaid.” The question that remains is: Who gets to collect on that unpaid debt?...more
The recent decision of DeLorean v. DeLorean Motor Co. is no doubt significant to the parties as well as attorneys and courts who will cite it in future briefs and decisions. However, it is also important because it...more
On June 19, the Indiana Supreme Court decided In the Matter of the Supervised Estate of Kent v. Kerr, rejecting a pre-mortem settlement agreement the Court of Appeals had unanimously validated last year. Aging Hoosiers often...more
On April 12, 2018, the Nevada Supreme Court held that one party's material breach of a contract releases the non-breaching party's contractual obligation to a third-party beneficiary. Cain v. Price, 134 Nev. Adv. Op. 26...more
In Saks v. Rogers, a beneficiary of a trust challenged a trial court’s enforcement of an arbitration decision. No. 04-16-00286-CV, 2017 Tex. App. LEXIS 6923 (Tex. App.—San Antonio July 26, 2017, no pet. history)....more
In Harrison v. Harrison Interests, a beneficiary of an estate and multiple trusts had a dispute with the executors and trustees. No. 14-15-00348-CV, 2017 Tex. App. LEXIS 1677 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.] February 28, 2017,...more
Maryland previously enacted a version of the Uniform Trust Code (UTC), which contains various provisions focused on permitting more efficient administration of trusts. However, Maryland’s version of the UTC initially omitted...more
In re Estate of House, 2014 Wash. App. LEXIS 3006 (Wash. Ct. App. 2014) - A release waiving any and all claims that the parties may have or may acquire, bars recovery for unknown claims existing at the time the release...more