Category: Probate

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Purple Rain Shower in California — Prince’s Estate Chases Northern California Law Firm

By Jeffrey S. Galvin on Posted in Asset Distribution, Inheritance Disputes, Probate
When musician Prince Rogers Nelson died at the age of 57 on April 21, 2016, he had no estate plan in place, not even a will.  We blogged that “You Don’t Have to Be Rich to Need an Estate Plan.” As the third anniversary of Prince’s death approaches, his probate estate continues to be administered … Continue Reading

California Courts May Scrutinize Conservator Fees

By Jeffrey S. Galvin on Posted in Conservatorships, Private Professional Fiduciaries, Probate, Trust Administration
Private professional fiduciaries in California are entitled to charge a reasonable fee for their services, but their fees for acting as conservators are subject to close court scrutiny. A recent California Court of Appeal case, In re Conservatorship of Presha (2018) 26 Cal.App.5th 487, shows how closely probate judges and their staffs may examine the … Continue Reading

Anti-SLAPP Case Features Arm Wrestling Siblings and a Prep School

By Jeffrey S. Galvin on Posted in Inheritance Disputes, Legal Expenses, No Contest Clauses, Probate, Trust Administration, Will/Trust Contests
California’s anti-SLAPP statute has generated another published case for trust and estate lawyers to ponder.  Last week, in Urick v. Urick (2017) 15 Cal.App.5th 1182, the California Court of Appeal confirmed that anti-SLAPP motions can be used to attack petitions to enforce no contest clauses. The opinion reminds California trust and estate counsel to be … Continue Reading

When Is a Will Valid in California?

By Tyson E. Hubbard on Posted in Estate Planning, Probate, Will Execution, Will/Trust Contests
Although much wealth passes today through trusts and beneficiary designations, we occasionally handle California probate disputes that turn on the validity of wills, sometimes involving high value estates. The standard practice in California estate planning is for wills to be typewritten and prepared by attorneys, but those steps are not necessary.  A holographic, i.e., handwritten, … Continue Reading

California Professional Fiduciaries Help Elders and Resolve Conflicts

By Jeffrey S. Galvin on Posted in Conservatorships, Private Professional Fiduciaries, Probate, Trust Administration
California trust and estate disputes may be avoided or resolved with the appointment of a private professional fiduciary to act in an oversight role with respect to an elder’s care and/or finances.  In a recent post, we suggested the use of professional fiduciaries or bank trust departments to resolve conflicts among family member co-trustees. Here … Continue Reading

Just the FAQs: California Trust and Estate Litigation’s Greatest Hits, Part 1

By Tyson E. Hubbard on Posted in Beneficiaries, Estate Planning, Probate, Trust Administration, Trustees
In our Sacramento trust and estate litigation practice there are several questions that come up over and over again.  In many instances, these questions are the building blocks of our practice that lead to more complicated questions that sometimes require the filing of a lawsuit to answer.  As a starting place, below are some of … Continue Reading

A Friend Request From The Beyond: California’s New Post-Death Digital Assets Law

By Tyson E. Hubbard on Posted in Estate Administration, Estate Planning, Non-Probate Transfers, Probate, Trust Administration
Next time you schedule an appointment with Downey Brand’s Sacramento office to revise your estate plan you will have a new question to consider: who will manage your Facebook account when you’re gone? Assembly Bill No. 691, which became effective on January 1, 2017, attempts to aid in that process.  It is commonly called the … Continue Reading

Sacramento Court Limits Reach of Anti-SLAPP Law in Trust Disputes

By Jeffrey S. Galvin on Posted in Legal Expenses, Probate, Trust Administration
A few months ago, I wrote about the anti-SLAPP statute as a powerful defensive tool in California trust and estate litigation. Adding new light to the subject is a Sacramento-based appellate court’s decision in Greco v. Greco (2016) 2 Cal.App.5th 810. The case narrows the ability of fiduciaries to bring motions to dismiss under the … Continue Reading

Watch Out for SLAPPs in California Trust and Estate Litigation

By Jeffrey S. Galvin on Posted in Inheritance Disputes, Legal Expenses, Probate, Trust Administration, Will/Trust Contests
In heated California trust and estate litigation, one party’s petition to the probate court often leads the other side to file a retaliatory petition. If Sally petitions in Sacramento County Superior Court to contest Mom’s trust amendment on the ground that Mom had Alzheimer’s disease and lacked sufficient mental capacity to reduce Sally’s share, brother … Continue Reading

“You Don’t Have to Be Rich” to Need a Plan

By Jeffrey S. Galvin on Posted in Advance Health Care Directives, Asset Distribution, Inheritance Disputes, Probate, Will/Trust Contests
Prince died in April 2016 without a will or trust, according to documents recently filed by his sister in the Carver County District Court in Minnesota. Perhaps a will or trust will surface eventually, as occurred with Michael Jackson’s estate. However, the revelation in “The Morning Papers” that Prince died intestate (legalese for no will … Continue Reading

Double Damages, Even In Death

By Tyson E. Hubbard on Posted in Appeal, Probate, Trustees
In addition to bark, the Probate Code can have bite too. Some Probate Code sections have provisions that are punitive in nature and are designed to keep fiduciaries and others dealing with trust property in line. These statutes have sharp teeth. Take, for example, California Probate Code section 859, which concerns property taken from a … Continue Reading

An Introduction to Department 129 of Sacramento County Superior Court

By Jeffrey S. Galvin on Posted in Probate, Sacramento County Superior Court, Trust Administration, Will/Trust Contests
This month Judge Steven M. Gevercer will replace Judge David F. De Alba as the probate judge in Department 129 of the Sacramento County Superior Court. Judge Gevercer was appointed to the bench by Governor Jerry Brown in 2012 and previously served in the California Attorney General’s Office. Judges typically spend a year or two … Continue Reading

Put Up Your Dukes: Courts Can Fix Mistakes in Wills … Sometimes

By Jeffrey S. Galvin on Posted in Inheritance Disputes, Probate, Will/Trust Interpretation
Sound estate planning requires a clear description of how property will pass upon death – in other words, who gets what. So what happens when the written terms differ from what the will’s creator actually wanted? Earlier this year, the California Supreme Court ruled in Estate of Duke (2015) 61 Cal.4th 871 that courts may … Continue Reading
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