A now-deceased man’s estate planning oversight yielded a dispute that will now be decided by the U.S. Supreme Court. The case of Hillman v. Maretta pits the man’s ex-wife, whom he named, and never replaced, as the death beneficiary on a life insurance policy, and the man’s current wife, who claimed that the ex-wife lost …
High Court to Review Case Awarding Insurance Proceeds to Ex-wife Read More »
A judge recently approved the sale of the home of former Playboy Playmate Anna Nicole Smith. The proceeds from the sale will go to the late model’s six-year-old daughter, Dannielynn. Many may remember Anna Nicole Smith for her marriage to the late J. Howard Marshall, an oil industry magnate. According to a local news article, …
Anna Nicole Smith’s Studio City Home Sells, Proceeds to Go to Daughter Read More »
Imagine a scenario where a parent passes away with four children and $400,000 in assets. The parent created a will stating that each child will inherit one-fourth of his estate. That sounds simple enough, right? Unfortunately, just such a scenario often turns into a long legal fight between siblings. Even in cases of modest wealth, …
A California Will May Not Prevent an Inheritance Battle Read More »
A recent decision by a Riverside County Superior Court judge may affect other California estate litigation cases where the decedent passed away in 2010. That was a unique year, as the federal government failed to levy an estate tax on any assets passed on by deceased loved ones. When estate planning documents are written in …
Riverside County Case Emphasizes the Need to Revisit Your California Estate Plan Often Read More »
California’s Fifth Appellate District held recently in King v. Lynch that amendments to a trust were not valid although they complied with Section 15401 of the California Probate Code because the amendments failed to comply with the method specified in the trust documents. In the case, a married couple, Zoel and Edna Lynch, created a …
Last month, California’s Fourth Appellate District recognized a claim for intentional interference with an expected inheritance (IIEI) in Beckwith v. Dahl. Prior to Beckwith, anyone who expected to inherit according to a California will or trust could only sue to overturn an instrument in probate court. In order to do so, however, a party must …
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