Should There Be An In Terrorem Clause in Your Will or Trust?
AUGUST 3, 2009 VOLUME 16, NUMBER 49 You would like to make sure that your children get along after you are no longer around to tell them to behave, wouldn’t you? Although you may not anticipate any disagreements, you know that money can change relationships, and you have seen how the death of a parent […]
Father’s Body, Moved Once, Need Not Be Moved Yet Again
APRIL 13, 2009 VOLUME 16, NUMBER 36 Is it just us, or is the incidence of family disputes over funeral and burial arrangements on the rise? A recent court case from Indiana makes us think maybe there are still more variations on a theme we thought had long since been played out. Sherman Warren died […]
Probate Fee Dispute Leads to Additional Attorney’s Fees
APRIL 12, 2004 VOLUME 11, NUMBER 41 Kathryn Gordon’s will named her sister, Nancy Molet, to handle her estate. Based on that will Ms. Molet was appointed as personal representative. Like most individuals in such circumstances, Ms. Molet hired an attorney to help her get through the probate process. Eventually Phoenix attorney Harvey Finks billed […]
Will Prepared By Bookkeeper Valid–Contestants Disinherited
SEPTEMBER 20, 1999 VOLUME 7, NUMBER 12 Six days before he died, Arizonan Ralph Shumway signed a new will. Rather than consult a lawyer to prepare the will, Mr. Shumway had relied on his bookkeeper, Adelida Vega Rodriguez, to prepare the document for him. Because the will she prepared left one fourth of Mr. Shumway’s […]