Recent changes were made to Pennsylvania’s power of attorney statute by Act 95 which was enacted in 2014 and amended Title 20, Chapter 56 of the PEF Code. All of the Act’s provisions have been effective since January 1, 2015.
PEF Code Section 5601.3(d)(1) provides that an agent shall not be required to disclose receipts
Thank you Gary Beyer for your post entitled "Wells Fargo Terminated as Trustee."
Beyer writes:
"On Thursday, a Circuit Judge in Wisconsin terminated Wells Fargo Bank as trustee of the Chester Bible scholarship trust, furnishing control to the Baraboo Community Scholarship Corporation (BCSC). For over a year, BCSC and Wells Fargo have disputed over
On July 10, 2014 the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania ordered the adoption of new Rule 4003.5 of the Pennsylvania Rules of Civil Procedure.
The rule has been modified and the following clause (4) is added:
(4) A party may not discover the communications between another party’s attorney and any expert who is to be identified
Ever since George Washington included arbitration provisions in his will, this idea has kicked around. Washington’s will contained this language:
"That all disputes (if unhappily they should arise) shall be decided by three impartial and intelligent men, known for their probity and good understanding; two to be chose by the disputants each having the choice
"Discourage litigation. Persuade your neighbors to compromise whenever you can. Point out to them how the nominal winner is often a real loser – in fees, expenses and waste of time."
— Abraham Lincoln 1850
Lincoln’s words are doubly true today. Our society is beset with litigation – and all too often, there are
On July 29, 2013, in the case of Morse v. Kraft the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts held that the Trustee of an irrevocable trust in which the Trustees had full discretion to distribute trust principal "for the benefit of" the beneficiary, could, without consent or court approval, distribute the assets to a different trust with the same
The reappearance of Brenda Heist in May after being declared legally dead has brought me all sorts of questions.
The Pennsylvania Statute that governs the property of absentees and persons presumed dead is at 50 Pa. Cons. Stat §§5701 through 5706. Generally, if a person disappears and is absent from his place of residence without being heard of after diligent inquiry, the county court may make a finding and decree that the absentee is dead and of the date of his death.
There are notice requirements. The matter must be advertised in a newspaper of general circulation in the county of the absentee’s last known residence and in the legal journal once each week for four successive weeks. Notice includes the hearing, which must be at least two weeks after the last appearance of the advertisement, when evidence will be heard concerning the alleged absence, including the circumstances and duration thereof.
An unexplained absence for seven years may be sufficient ground for finding that the absentee died seven years after he was last heard of. The seven years gives rise to a presumption but it is important to note that the court may declare an absentee dead before the expiration of 7 years. Conversely, the presumption can be overcome and a 7 year absence may not justify a finding that the absentee died. Evidence that the absent person was a fugitive from justice, had a bad relationship, was having money troubles, or had no family ties or connection to the community can be reasons not to presume death.
The fact that an absentee was exposed to a specific peril of death may be sufficient ground for finding that he died less than seven years after he was last heard of. An example would be an airplane crash. Passengers and crew of the Titanic who were not rescued by the RMS Carpathia were declared legally dead soon after Carpathia arrived at New York City.
In 2002, the statute was amended to provide that the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 are specific perils within the meaning of the law and a court would be justified to immediately determine that the presumed decedent died on September 11, 2001. Also, for persons presumed dead on September 11, 2001, the requirements of notice to the absentee and of the need to post a refunding bond for property distribution are eliminated.
What happens to the presumed decedent’s property?
The decedent’s property is administered by an executor of the will or administrator of the estate just as in the case of other decedents. However, the executor or administrator make not make any distributions to beneficiaries except by a court decree. The court, in awarding distribution, must require that a refunding bond, with or without security and in such form and amount as the court shall direct. The bond shall be conditioned that, if it shall later be established that the absentee was in fact alive at the time of distribution, the distributee will return the property to the preseumed decedednt, or if it has been disposed of, will make restitutionContinue Reading Return of the Legally Dead
Recommended reading: Stripping Away the Mystery of the Probate Exception By John T. Brooks and Samantha E. Weissbluth
Federal court can hear breach of fiduciary duty claim against trustees.
We looked at this issue before in our post Make a Federal Case Out of It.
I always say 99% of the lawyers give the rest of us a bad name.
Brianna Bailey writes for News OK:
"A federal judge has sentenced a Midwest City man who conned seniors out of their savings to serve nearly 10 years in prison and pay $4.6 million in restitution for his role in the
Thank you to WIlls, Trusts and Estates Prof Blog for the post regarding Fisk University, Cy Pres and Georgia O’Keefe’s Art Collection.
Melanie B. Leslie (Professor of Law, Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law) recently published her article entitled Time to sever the dead hand: Fisk University and the cost of the cy pres