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
Newcomers to probate litigation are frequently surprised by how differently things work in probate court, as opposed to your more straightforward civil courts. (And how do those newcomers know how civil courts work? Law &...more
The Michigan Court of Appeals recently issued an interesting ruling regarding the ability of a litigant in probate litigation to recover attorney fees from the trust in dispute, even if all parties agree to such payment. In...more
Does the phrase “if they survive me” demonstrate a testator’s intent to avoid the Massachusetts Uniform Probate Code (“MUPC”) anti-lapse statute, Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 190B § 2-603? The Massachusetts Supreme...more
Probate litigation can be a complicated and emotionally taxing process, especially in a state like New York known for its stringent probate laws. When disputes arise over the distribution of assets or the validity of a will,...more
What are some of the fundamental issues when estate planning for business owners? Why should every business owner have an estate plan? What are some of the primary issues to address in an effective estate plan for those who...more
The Michigan Court of Appeals recently identified a situation in which the personal representative of an estate is not entitled to have attorney fees paid from estate assets. Braun Kendrick Finkbeiner, PLC, v. Estate of...more
Trial attorney David Skidmore from Warner Norcross + Judd LLP’s Probate Litigation Practice Group, a subgroup of the firm’s Litigation and Dispute Resolution Practice Group, recently represented clients in a trial before the...more
While undue influence claims are commonly asserted in probate proceedings, especially with the increased prevalence of dementia and similar disabilities, two recent cases from New York’s Appellate Division illustrate how...more
In 2021 and 2022, I wrote about Surrogate’s Court decisions that addressed the admission of remotely witnessed wills to probate in New York State. Since then, Surrogate’s Courts have issued at least two more decisions...more
Artificial Intelligence (“AI”) made legal and mainstream news in 2023. In a highly publicized and widely discussed case, Mata v. Avianca, Inc., the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York...more
In the recent case In Laureen Gordon Revocable Trust, the Michigan Court of Appeals digs into these questions. Gordon Trust involved a fight between an uncle and his niece and nephew primarily over the distribution of family...more
Probate, the legal process of administering a deceased person’s estate, can be complex and challenging. During this process, a court determines whether a Will is authentic and valid and then distributes the estate to heirs or...more
If you expect to face disputes over the allocation of your loved one’s estate, retaining a probate litigation attorney might be the right choice. Here’s what you need to know about hiring an experienced attorney who can help...more
In In re Tr. A & Tr. C, Established Under Bernard L. & Jeannette Fenenbock Living Tr. Agreement, Dated Mar. 12, 2008, a co-trustee of a family trust transferred stock from the trust to her personal trust and then sold the...more
This newsletter is intended to keep readers informed about developments in probate and fiduciary litigation in Massachusetts and New York. Our lawyers are at the forefront of this area of the law, shaping how it is handled in...more
For trust and estate litigators, the federal court experience invariably begins – and sometimes ends — with an analysis of the probate exception to federal diversity jurisdiction. Two recent Southern District cases examine...more
Michael Oher, retired NFL star, filed a petition in probate court on Monday asserting that he was tricked into consenting to a conservatorship (in Florida we refer to this as guardianship) which he believed was an adoption by...more
Subject Matter Matters in Land Court - DiNicola v. Ely, et al., No. 23 MISC 000128 (2023), Berkshire County (Land Court May 25, 2023) - Does the Massachusetts Land Court have subject matter jurisdiction over claims...more
Exactly where a court’s jurisdiction begins and ends is a question that has long irked our judicial system. One muddle is the extent to which federal courts, as opposed to state courts, can decide disputes involving a...more
This newsletter is intended to keep readers informed about developments in probate and fiduciary litigation in Massachusetts and New York. ...more
This week, the Court addresses the application of the probate exception to federal-court jurisdiction. The Court holds that the probate-exception bar to federal-court jurisdiction does not apply when a breach-of-contract...more
In the Estate of Beverly Howe (Mich Ct App March 9, 2023) (unpublished), the Court of Appeals reviewed two tools employed at the probate court level to address a litigious beneficiary whose claims were causing the estate and...more
We are increasingly seeing more disputes over the validity of marriages in probate litigation. A recurring fact pattern is that a romantic partner will attempt to orchestrate a marriage to the second partner, who is suffering...more
In Bean v. Bean, a dissenting co-executor sought relief from a probate court regarding whether certain assets were separate property or community property. No. 05-21-00286-CV, 2022 Tex. App. LEXIS 9058 (Tex. App.—Dallas...more