Ademption: Sale of Stock Defeats Inheritance
A will (or trust) often leaves specific items — like stock — to named individuals. But what happens when that specific item no longer exists at the death of the owner? Well, let’s review the concept of “ademption.” What is ademption? The legal concept of ademption is straightforward. But understanding it requires us to first […]
A Probate Potpourri
This week we looked for cases (and stories) illustrating important principles from probate court. We found a surprising batch of cases, and wanted to share them all. Hence this probate potpourri. We have four cases (from California, Louisiana, Maine, and New York) to share with you. California: “right of survivorship” may not mean what it […]
Due Process Required in Guardianship Proceeding
Probate courts have broad discretion about how to handle the cases they consider. Especially when it comes to guardianship and conservatorship, the probate judge usually has considerable latitude about how to proceed. It is essential, however, that the probate judge recognize that he or she must give the litigants their due process — the rules […]
Lawyer Entitled to Hearing Before Being Ordered to Disgorge Fees
When a court decides that a lawyer should return fees improperly collected, the usual term comes with powerful imagery. The lawyer is usually ordered to “disgorge” those fees. Courts are very protective about the fees charged in probate, guardianship and trust administration matters. Lawyers often find themselves having to justify their fees. An order to […]
Privacy Concerns Loom Large in Probate Court
JANUARY 16, 2017 VOLUME 24 NUMBER 3 Things change. This is our twenty-fourth year of publishing Elder Law Issues, and one thing we frankly didn’t think much about a quarter-century ago was privacy. Today it’s a big concern, and central to a lot of our thinking. When Fleming & Curti, PLC, first formed in 1994, […]
