In their February 11, 2008 Trusts & Estates article, Corporate Trustees Beware, Samantha E. Weissbluth and Erika Alley, both of Foley & Lardner, LLP, in Chicago discuss the case of Janice Galloway Trust, No. C5-04-200042 (Minn. Dist. Ct. 2007). A corporate fiduciary was sued for breach of fiduciary duty on the theory that it failed to do estate
Singing Law Professor?
Check this out:
Don’t miss the performance on You Tube
Blogging credit to Professor Gary Beyer at Wills Trusts and Estates Prof Blog
Pre-death Will Validation
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I always thought there should be some procedure to validate a will before the testator’s death. After all, the testator is the best source of evidence about his or her intent. And the best time to assess a testator’s capacity or susceptibility to undue influence is at the time the will is made, right? It
The Joker
Heath Ledger, famous for his protrayal of Ennis Del Mar in Brokeback Mountain (2005). died January 22, 2008. He had just finished filming the latest Batman movie, The Dark Knight, where he played The Joker: The Clown Prince of Crime. The Harlequin of Hate. The Ace of Knaves.
According to The New
Blattmachr on Reducing Estate and Trust Litigation
Jonathan G. Blattmachr, a partner at Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCoy LLP, has published "Reducing Estate and Trust Litigation Through Disclosure, In Terrorem Clauses, Mediation and Arbitration" in the Cardozo Journal of Conflict Resolution, 9 Cardozo J. Conflict Resol. 237 (2008).
He suggests six methods to reduce the risk of litigation with respect
PA Superior Court – Wrong Again
In a decision filed April 17, 2008, the Pennsylvania Superior Court turned what we know about wills and joint property on its head. In In re Estate of Amelia J. Piet, the court ruled that joint accounts did not pass to the surviving joint owner because the accounts were made joint after the execution
Boomsday
Mediation for Trusts and Estates
"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
Lincoln’s words are doubly true today. Our society is beset with litigation – and all too often, there are no
$$$ Excessive Commissions and Fees $$$
Both Attorney’s fees and Executor’s commissions were reduced in Janiga Estate (O.C. Div. Phila.) 28 Fiduc. Rep. 2d 219, opinion by Judge Herron.
Decedent left an estate valued at $1,024,425.21 and a will that devised two parcels of real estate to the Executrix, made some specific bequests, and divided the residue between two charities.
The
Evidence from the Wayback Machine
Tracey Rich writes for the National Law Journal about using a company’s website against them. Check out: Find Evidence on Your Opponent’s Web Site. Rich reports:
"Browsing a party’s Web site will only show the information that the Web site owner currently wants visitors to see. Sometimes, the most valuable information about an opposing