Michael Jackson’s will empowered his estate executors to enter into a business transaction with a third party, Court of Appeal holds
For 15 years, the executors of Michael Jackson’s estate have been managing estate assets and operating his businesses. The executors petitioned the probate court to approve a transaction in which the estate would transfer some assets to a joint venture with a third party, in
Court of Appeal Affirms Order Enforcing No Contest Clause, Making New Law On The Probable Cause Standard
A trust beneficiary filed and litigated a trust contest, despite multiple warnings that the contest was barred by Probate Code section 16061.7’s 120-day deadline and that if the trust beneficiary continued to press the contest, her interest in the trust would be invalidated under the
Court Of Appeal Affirms Ruling In Interpretation Of A Hand-Written Will
The Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District, Division One, has affirmed a probate court ruling in favor of GMSR’s clients in a contest over interpretation of a hand-written will. The testator was not a lawyer and wrote his will informally. He sometimes drew arrows to
Court of Appeal affirms GMSR clients’ appointment as general administrators of a large estate
The probate court had appointed GMSRs’ clients – professional fiduciaries – as special administrators to manage decedent’s businesses after her death. When the special administrators examined the companies’ finances, they discovered evidence suggesting that appellant had engaged in mismanagement and fraud. They locked him out
Court of Appeal holds that plaintiffs’ exclusive remedy for defendant’s intentional interference with inheritance expectancy was in probate court
Relying on Beckwith v. Dahl (2012) 205 Cal.App.4th 1039, plaintiffs sued their uncle, GMSR’s client, in civil court for intentionally interfering with their expectation of inheritance. They claimed their uncle intentionally exerted undue influence over his parents and interfered with his mother’s desires to leave
Court of Appeal rejects claim that Michael Jackson gave away 15% of his business at a middle-of-the-night meeting
Four people claimed that Michael Jackson promised them 15% of The Michael Jackson Company in a middle-of-the-night meeting in 2006. After a long bench trial, the probate court rejected those claims on multiple grounds and confirmed that Jackson wholly owned the company.
California Supreme Court fundamentally alters probate law
In re Estate of Duke (2015) 61 Cal.4th 871 (California Supreme Court). From time immemorial, courts throughout the United States have been powerless to correct drafting mistakes in wills no matter how clearly the evidence established the testator’s actual intent. Courts could use the doctrine
Court of Appeal reverses probate court order dismissing GMSR’s client’s petition for failure to file a creditor’s claim
Novak v. Fay (2015) 236 Cal.App.4th 329 (California Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District, Division Five) [published]. GMSR’s client, an attorney, agreed to represent a husband under a contingent-fee arrangement in a suit against the estate of his late wife on a pretermitted-heir theory. In
Court of Appeal affirms trial court order reforming $100 million trust
Crowe v. Tweten (2014) 2014 Cal.App. Unpub. LEXIS 9294 (California Court of Appeal, Fourth Appellate District, Division Two) [unpublished]. An elderly couple devised an estate plan with the assistance of counsel. They repeatedly stated that their intent was for the surviving spouse to inherit everything
GMSR obtains dismissal of appeal challenging probate court order of instructions to trustee
Wells Fargo Bank v. D. Sprott (2012) 2012 Cal.App. Unpub. LEXIS 7824 (California Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District, Division One) [unpublished]. In the probate court, GMSR’s client—Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., acting as trustee of a testamentary trust—obtained an order instructing it how to implement
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