The published panel affirmed dismissal of the first claim and held a third claim time-barred under G.S. 36C-6-604(a), but reversed summary judgment on the second claim and remanded it. Because the ruling on the third claim resolved that controversy, the defendants’ limitations cross-appeal no longer had a practical effect and was dismissed as moot.
The First Department upheld revocation of powers of attorney where agents paid themselves without invoices, billed legal rates for personal services, and mismanaged the principal’s accounts.
The First Department held that a revocable trust containing no transferred assets could not govern a decedent’s estate and refused to imply a gift contrary to the instrument’s limited text.
In a published opinion, the Superior Court upheld appointment of a neutral lawyer to administer an intestate estate, holding that kinship alone gives no priority when the relative is not an heir.
The First Department approved beneficiary changes and LLC reforms under Mental Hygiene Law Article 81 to preserve an incapacitated person’s longstanding estate plan.
The Utah Court of Appeals held that a deceased beneficiary’s widow did not inherit his trust share, personal development agreement, or right of first refusal.
The Second Department held, in a case of first impression, that land wholly owned by a trust and an LLC is not heirs property under RPAPL 993.
The Court of Appeals affirmed the probate and circuit court orders with a modification to the fee award. The record supported rejection of the purported will, a finding that Hasian converted estate assets, and an award of litigation expenses under the Probate Code’s authority to allocate costs as justice and equity require. The court clarified the proper legal basis and scope of recoverable fees rather than treating every requested theory as interchangeable.
The Supreme Court accepted the agreement and publicly reprimanded Compton. It found violations of the professional rules governing competence, diligence, communication, and related responsibilities. The court also required payment of disciplinary costs, an assessment through Lawyers Helping Lawyers with compliance with resulting recommendations, and completion of Ethics School within one year.
The Alaska Supreme Court upheld a trust amendment that largely disinherited one son, deferring to findings of testamentary capacity and no undue influence.
The South Carolina Court of Appeals revived a constructive-trust theory based on an alleged promise not to use a testamentary power of appointment to alter a family company’s voting control.