In Developing Countries, Lack of Inheritance Rights for Women May Depress the Country’s Economy
Posted on | May 17, 2012 | No Comments
In a posting on the World Bank’s blog, there is an article that points out that wives and daughters don’t have the same inheritance rights as husbands and sons in developing countries. In those countries, ownership of land is important and keeping that land in production benefits the whole economic climate. However, since women’s inheritance rights are limited, women may not be willing to put in the work necessary to keep the land in production. Their rights are often temporary rather than permanent. The article suggest that changes in inheritance laws will produce a range of socioeconomic improvements in those countries.
The foregoing information is general in nature and does not apply to every fact situation. If you are concerned about inheritance laws, have an inheritance dispute, a property dispute or want information about contesting a will, we can help. Please go to our main site www.theprobate.net and use the contact form to contact us today. We would love to learn about your case and there is no fee for the initial consultation.
Do the Witnesses to a Will Have to Know They are Witnessing a Will?
Posted on | May 11, 2012 | No Comments
Witnesses at a will signing attest the will. Attestation means the act of witnessing the performance of the statutory requirements to a valid execution of the will. Those statutory requirements do not include publication of a will’s contents or, for that reason, that the witnesses know that they are signing a will.
“Publication,” in relation to the making of wills, is the act of declaring or making known to the witnesses that the testator understands and intends the instrument signed by him to be his last will and testament. Publication of a will, or the calling the attention of the witnesses to the will, by the testator, that the instrument which they are requested to attest is his will, is not a prerequisite to its legality unless required by statute. In fact, a will can be properly executed even if the witnesses to the will don’t know that they are witnessing a will! It is not necessary for the subscribing witnesses to know the contents of the will. The witness is simply a witness to the signature of the testator. 210 S.W.3d 648.
The foregoing information is general in nature and does not apply to every fact situation. If you are concerned about inheritance laws, have an inheritance dispute, a property dispute or want information about contesting a will, we can help. Please go to our main site www.theprobate.net and use the contact form to contact us today. We would love to learn about your case and there is no fee for the initial consultation.
BBC reports that 20% of Wills in the UK May Contain Mistakes
Posted on | May 9, 2012 | No Comments
The BBC reports that the Legal Services Board (LSB), which oversees the profession in England and Wales, said 20% of wills contained mistakes. Apparently, anyone can set up a will-writing service but the LSB wants all providers to be regulated. The LSB reports systematic problems with will-writing including unfair sales practices and fraud and deception.
The foregoing information is general in nature and does not apply to every fact situation. If you are concerned about inheritance laws, have an inheritance dispute, a property dispute or want information about contesting a will, we can help. Please go to our main site www.theprobate.net and use the contact form to contact us today. We would love to learn about your case and there is no fee for the initial consultation.
Is There an Attorney Client Privilege in a Will Contest?
Posted on | May 7, 2012 | No Comments
When a suit is filed contesting a will, the attorney who prepared the will may not be involved in the will contest. Since he is the one who supposedly prepared the will at the request of the testator, he would have some knowledge of the testator’s condition at the time the will was executed as well as knowing what the testator was saying and doing in the weeks or months leading up to the execution of will. Usually there is an attorney-client privilege between the attorney and the client so that nobody can force the attorney to testify about the attorney’s communications with the client. However, there is a specific section of the evidence code that says the attorney-client privilege is not available in will contests and the attorney must testify if called by either party. 503(d)(3).
The foregoing information is general in nature and does not apply to every fact situation. If you are concerned about inheritance laws, have an inheritance dispute, a property dispute or want information about contesting a will, we can help. Please go to our main site www.theprobate.net and use the contact form to contact us today. We would love to learn about your case and there is no fee for the initial consultation.
Change In Massachusetts’ Probate Law Benefits Spouses.
Posted on | April 16, 2012 | No Comments
A note posted on the Lowell Sun’s website states that a recently passed Uniform Probate Code in Massachusetts made changes in the law of intestate succession. Before, when a person died without a will, the spouse and children divided the property. Under the new law, the spouse takes it all. Texas has a similar law but only when the wife is the mother of all of the testator’s children. If she is, she gets all of the testator’s community property. The children and wife split the separate property. If the wife is not the mother of all of the testator’s children, the wife and children split all the property whether community or separate with most going to the children.
The article didn’t go in to details about the change so you should contact a Massachusetts lawyer if you need more information. Massachusetts is not a community property state and the note didn’t say whether there is a difference if the wife is not the mother of all of the testator’s children.
The foregoing information is general in nature and does not apply to every fact situation. If you are concerned about inheritance laws, have an inheritance dispute, a property dispute or want information about contesting a will, we can help. Please go to our main site www.theprobate.net and use the contact form to contact us today. We would love to learn about your case and there is no fee for the initial consultation.
Do Ex-pats Worry About Inheritance Laws?
Posted on | April 14, 2012 | 2 Comments
They sure do. I have seen several articles and discussions recently from ex-pats (people living in foreign countries) about the inheritance laws of their host countries. Since foreign countries may have more taxes on estates than the United States does, where your estate is probated is and should be a big concern if you live in a foreign country. You can review some postings about the concern here and here.
The foregoing information is general in nature and does not apply to every fact situation. If you are concerned about inheritance laws, have an inheritance dispute, a property dispute or want information about contesting a will, we can help. Please go to our main site www.theprobate.net and use the contact form to contact us today. We would love to learn about your case and there is no fee for the initial consultation.
“You never really know a person until you’ve shared an inheritance with them”
Posted on | April 13, 2012 | No Comments
That quote is from the Hays Daily News site reporting on a seminar put on by Kansas State University titled “Women in Agriculture.” The article related how the women were encouraged to get their estates and the estates of their family members in order to avoid problems after death. You can read the article here.
The foregoing information is general in nature and does not apply to every fact situation. If you are concerned about inheritance laws, have an inheritance dispute, a property dispute or want information about contesting a will, we can help. Please go to our main site www.theprobate.net and use the contact form to contact us today. We would love to learn about your case and there is no fee for the initial consultation.
Tags: Contesting Wills > Family Settlement Agreement
Will contest in Australia.
Posted on | April 13, 2012 | No Comments
I have written previously about the reasons more people are filing will contest today than in the past. You can view that article here. The United States is not the only country where wills are contested. If you are interested in the requirements for contesting a will in Australia, look at this site.
The foregoing information is general in nature and does not apply to every fact situation. If you are concerned about inheritance laws, have an inheritance dispute, a property dispute or want information about contesting a will, we can help. Please go to our main site www.theprobate.net and use the contact form to contact us today. We would love to learn about your case and there is no fee for the initial consultation.
Can you create a trust with my money?
Posted on | April 2, 2012 | No Comments
In 2005 the Texarkana Court of Appeals was asked that question. An elderly couple who became concerned about their future health and living care needs made two of their children signatories on their bank account. Over time, the mother died and a daughter was able to get sole control of the funds. She refused to give her father access to the account. The father filed suit. The daughter responded to the suit by saying that after the mother had died her brother started making large withdrawals from the fund. To protect the money, the daughter took the money out of the account and opened a new account where she was the only signatory. Her position was that the parents had orally created a trust when they put her on the account originally and she was just following the dictates of the trust. She also claimed that once her mother had died, the trust became irrevocable and her father could not revoke it. The trial court agreed with the daughter and held that the parents had created an oral trust when they put the daughter on the account and she had every right to protect their interest by taking the money out of that account and putting it in another one where she was the sole signatory on the account. The father appealed.
The appeals court reversed. They explained that a trust must be in writing. There are some exceptions to that rule but none of those exceptions were present in this case. Since there was no trust, the funds belonged to the father and not to the alleged trust. The court also held that if any trust was created, it was a revocable trust and the father could and did revoked the alleged trust by filing suit. The trial court was reversed and the appeals court sent the case back to the trial court to determine how much attorney’s fees should be awarded against the daughter. 167 sw3 924.
The foregoing information is general in nature and does not apply to every fact situation. If you are concerned about inheritance laws, have an inheritance dispute, a property dispute or want information about contesting a will, we can help. Please go to our main site www.theprobate.net and use the contact form to contact us today. We would love to learn about your case and there is no fee for the initial consultation.
Does a Bank Have to Return Money to an Estate that it Let the Wrong Person Withdraw?
Posted on | March 9, 2012 | No Comments
In two recent cases in the San Antonio area, the Texas Supreme Court was asked to decide if two banks were required to return money to an estate that the banks had paid out to a person with fraudulent papers. The facts were that a former county employee who worked in the probate section of the county clerk’s office stole a stamp that the clerk used to stamp Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration. When the employee would learn that someone had died intestate, he would prepare forged Letters of Administration and seal them with the stolen seal. The forged documents listed the employee as the duly appointed Administrator of the estate. He would then go the the bank, present his letters and gain control of the accounts.
In both cases, the Supreme Court held that the banks were liable to the estates if the estates took prompt action. The Court ruled for the bank in one of the cases and for the estate in the other. The rulings were based on procedural matters rather than the obligations of the bank to return the money. The Court explained the obligation that the bank has to the estate to return the money to the estate even if the bank was also a victim of a fraud. Because the Court decided both of the cases on procedural matters and how quickly claims were made against the banks, it is important that an estate take action as soon as it is aware of any suspicious activities involving the estate’s bank accounts. 08-0908, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. v. Christa C. Lenk
The foregoing information is general in nature and does not apply to every fact situation. If you are concerned about inheritance laws, have an inheritance dispute, a property dispute or want information about contesting a will, we can help. Please go to our main site http://theprobate.net/contact-us and use the contact form to contact us today. We would love to learn about your case and there is no fee for the initial consultation.
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- In Developing Countries, Lack of Inheritance Rights for Women May Depress the Country’s Economy
- Do the Witnesses to a Will Have to Know They are Witnessing a Will?
- BBC reports that 20% of Wills in the UK May Contain Mistakes
- Is There an Attorney Client Privilege in a Will Contest?
- Change In Massachusetts’ Probate Law Benefits Spouses.
- Do Ex-pats Worry About Inheritance Laws?
- “You never really know a person until you’ve shared an inheritance with them”
- Will contest in Australia.
- Can you create a trust with my money?
- Does a Bank Have to Return Money to an Estate that it Let the Wrong Person Withdraw?