Once Removed Episode 13: It’s 5 o’Clock: Do You Know Where Your Will Is? A Lesson From Aretha Franklin
SDNY Chooses “Time Approach” to Calculating Lease Termination Damages Collectible Against a Bankrupt Estate
Protecting Your Estate Plan from Challenges: No-Contest Clause Explained
Executors play a crucial role in managing and distributing an estate according to the wishes outlined in a will. But what happens when an executor steps outside their duties or abuses their power?...more
What you need to know before appointing an executor under your Will - Appointing the right executor is one of the most important decisions when preparing a Will. Executors play a central role in the administration of an...more
Celebrity estate disputes often make for dramatic headlines, but the legal challenges they reveal can resonate far beyond the rich and famous. Join Whitney O’Reilly, chair of our Trust & Estates Group, for an insightful...more
The North Carolina Court of Appeals’ recent decision on December 3, 2024 in Abitol v. Clark highlights the critical role of clear drafting in estate planning and raises novel legal questions regarding the inheritance rights...more
Loan or gift? Handle intrafamily transfers with care - If you’re like most people, an important goal of estate planning is to provide financial assistance to your children or other loved ones, ideally at the lowest...more
When a loved one dies, the last thing you want to deal with is a lawsuit, or have your heirs inherit a lawsuit. After the death of a maternal or paternal figure that keeps the family together, tensions flare between siblings...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
No, according to In re Estate of Elze D. Harris, Docket No. 362364 (September 28, 2023). In Estate of Harris, the decedent’s three children were embroiled in litigation over who should control their deceased father’s...more
If you had to say where your will is located right now, could you? Despite the importance of that document, many clients are not sure where the original is located. In this episode, Steve discusses the case of Aretha...more
There are a few standard questions I almost always get when people find out that I work in probate litigation. “Do people call you right away when their relatives die?” “Isn’t that tough to deal with, emotionally?” And most...more
In this episode of “Splitting Heirs” host Warren K. Racusin of Lowenstein’s Trusts & Estates practice is joined by Jeffrey J. Wild, Lowenstein partner and litigator whose practice focuses on fiduciary issues; the Honorable...more
David F. Johnson participated in a panel presentation entitled “The Baby-Boomer Generation & The Largest Succession of Wealth in History: The New Frontier in Asset Recovery?” for the Offshore Alert Miami Conference on April...more
SECURE 2.0 provides a boost to your retirement and estate plans - The SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 (SECURE 2.0) expands on the changes made by the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2019 (SECURE Act)....more
Occasionally, you may receive conflicting advice from two people – both people you trust, both skilled in their fields. How do you decide what to do?...more
You’ve received an inheritance: Now what? If you’ve received, or will soon receive, a significant inheritance, it may be tempting to view it as “found money” that can be spent freely. But unless your current financial plan...more
People handle grief differently and sometimes how a person handles the death of a loved one can be both confusing and also extremely frustrating - fighting over little things like, who gets the table and the chairs, for...more
A person who challenges the validity of a will has the burden of rebutting the presumption that a will is valid. In Logan Estate (Re), 2021 ABCA 6, the challenger was unable to rebut this presumption due to the strength of...more
As we enter the New Year, it’s a good time to revisit your estate plan. The big question is whether your will, trust, power of attorney, and advance health care directive accomplish your personal objectives. Guidance from an...more
Many California trust and estate disputes involve the allocation of real estate amongst several beneficiaries. Mom and Dad, may they rest in peace, owned an upscale home in the Fab 40s neighborhood of East Sacramento, a sweet...more
Producers, writers, and reporters have long been fascinated with high-stakes wealth, estate and trusts, and shareholder disputes. Whether tragic or comic, the drama between clients, families, business partners, as well as the...more
No contest clauses are included in wills and trusts to discourage dissatisfied beneficiaries from challenging the document’s validity. Because enforcement of these clauses results in disinheritance, the California Probate...more
If you are a beneficiary in a will that contains a no-contest clause, and you don't like what the will directs, be careful before you question its validity. You just might lose everything....more
As a battle rages on in Nanterre, west of Paris, over the estate of Johnny Hallyday, who is best known as the “French Elvis”, and spills out across the pages of the tabloid press in France, we offer a view from Hallyday’s...more