Trusts & Estates

Firm Closes for Day So Employees Could Put Their Wills to Rest

When higher-ups at a Long Island elder law and estate planning firm realized that more than half the firm’s staff didn’t have their own affairs in order, managers took action. They closed Genser Dubow Genser & Cona for a day so that senior lawyers could help workers and their spouses…

Aug 12, 2008 10:48 AM CDT

Gov. Liable for $455M in American Indian Trust Dispute

In a long-running dispute involving claims that the federal government has swindled American Indians under a trust account system created more than 100 years ago, a federal judge has sided, to a point, with the trust holders. But rather than the $48 billion that the American Indian trust holders claim…

Aug 8, 2008 12:13 PM CDT

Art of the Sale

When members of the board of trustees of Randolph College needed to shore up the school’s endowment last fall, they turned to the school’s Maier Museum of Art.

Aug 1, 2008 1:15 PM CDT

Judge Orders Calif. Woman Back on Life Support

A central California woman who has been without food or water since July 14 is now back on life support again, after a state judge ordered that a feeding tube be reinserted. Janet Rivera, 46, has been comatose for two years, following a heart attack. Because her husband also suffers…

Jul 24, 2008 4:09 PM CDT

Leona Helmsley Left $5-$8 Billion in Trust for Stray Dogs, Other US Canines

If it holds up in court, hotel magnate Leona Helmsley has left in trust a staggering sum to help care for the nation’s dogs after her death—somewhere between $5 and $8 billion. “Even if the resulting total is at the low end of the estimate—$5 billion or so—the trust will…

Jul 1, 2008 11:32 PM CDT

Why Texas DAs Rarely Prosecute Estate Theft, and Why Lawyers Like It That Way

Texas prosecutors rarely bring charges in connection with estate thefts, and probate lawyers are partly to blame. The lawyers usually advise heirs to file civil lawsuits rather than go to police, the Austin American-Statesman reports. Civil lawyers are not required to report the suspected theft by clients’ relatives under state…

Jun 30, 2008 5:54 PM CDT

Judge Cuts $10M from Leona Helmsley’s $12M Bequest to Dog

The pet dog of deceased Leona Helmsley is losing $10 million of the $12 million that the 87-year-old hotel heiress left him in her will when she died last year, disinheriting two grandchildren. But the elimination of most of Trouble’s trust fund isn’t expected to put a dent in the…

Jun 16, 2008 5:43 PM CDT

Houston Law Firm May Have to Repay $1M in Legal Fees OK’d By Judge

A prominent Texas law firm reportedly may have to repay up to $1 million in legal fees in a trust litigation matter, even though they were authorized by a state probate judge. Judge Mike Wood was wrong to award $500,000 in fees to Crain Caton & James, a Texas appeals…

Jun 6, 2008 5:30 PM CDT

Revised Reporting Law Could Mean Big Penalties for U.S. Clients of UBS

Prosecutors are expected to issue a subpoena seeking the names of wealthy U.S. clients using the services of Swiss bank UBS AG to avoid income taxes. Ultimately the probe could result in big fines for U.S. clients who failed to report offshore trust accounts. The subpoena would follow the indictments…

May 15, 2008 1:23 PM CDT

Lawyer Finds Niche Representing Gay Clients

A lawyer from downstate Illinois has developed a niche representing gay couples. Bloomington lawyer Jon McLaughlin told Dolan Media Newswires that about a fifth of his clients are gay or lesbian. “My firm does quite a bit of estate planning, and I thought it would be nice for someone to…

May 9, 2008 1:14 PM CDT

Hearst Heir’s Malpractice Suit: Lawyer Helped Wife Steal $20M

A New York appeals court has reinstated a $20 million malpractice and fraud suit brought by a grandson of newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst against the grandson’s wife and the couple’s lawyer. After he suffered a debilitating stroke in 1989 at age 55, John Randolph Hearst Jr. contends, his wife,…

May 2, 2008 10:49 PM CDT

Six Lawyers Boomerang to Holland & Knight

Six trusts and estates lawyers are rejoining Holland & Knight after leaving the firm several years ago for Luce Forward. Leading the group are partners Bruce Ross and Sean Higgins, who will be joining Holland & Knight’s Los Angeles office, the National Law Journal’s Legal Pad blog reports. Ross has…

May 2, 2008 5:03 PM CDT

Lawyer Suspended for Accepting Estate-Planning Clients from Direct Mailer

A Michigan lawyer has agreed to a two-year suspension in Ohio for accepting clients from a company that uses direct mail to market estate-planning services, the Legal Profession Blog reports. The lawyer, Katherine Jackel of Ann Arbor, made only $175 for work on a financial-planning document that cost the client…

May 2, 2008 1:35 PM CDT

Plotting Against Probate

Efforts by estate planners, courts and legislatures to minimize probate haven’t killed it yet

May 1, 2008 1:00 PM CDT

Rover Now Has Legal Muscle as Animal Law Field Emerges

Just eight years ago, only nine ABA-accredited law schools offered courses in the fledgling field of animal. Now? More than 90 of the 196 accredited schools are on the list. No longer are animals simply considered property, especially as they are being named as beneficiaries, become subjects of lawsuits and…

Apr 3, 2008 5:45 PM CDT