A lawsuit filed by the mother of Reese Witherspoon against the actress’ father is drawing attention to the plight of an aging population stricken with dementia who can be preyed upon by opportunists. In January, John Drake Witherspoon, age 70, married Tricianne Taylor, who is 60, according to a certificate of marriage filed with the Keep Reading…
RABAT, Morocco (AP) – More than half of Morocco’s judges signed a petition on Monday that calls for prosecutors to be allowed to operate independently of the executive branch – a reform many say is necessary to prevent judicial corruption. The Moroccan government and royal family are seen to have inordinate power over the judiciary Keep Reading…
Midlands law firm FBC Manby Bowdler has established a contentious probate team to focus the work of its specialist lawyers already advising on numerous claims against trusts, wills and estates. The FBC Manby Bowdler Contentious Probate team is made up of four key partners who specialise in wills and trusts, co-habitation, inheritance and dispute resolution. Keep Reading…
EMI Music could lose its grip on one of the most famous pieces of film music ever created — “The Pink Panther Theme,” written by the late Henry Mancini for the 1963 film. Late last month, Mancini’s publishing company, Northridge Music Inc., controlled by the composer’s heirs, filed a claim at the American Arbitration Association Keep Reading…
The California Court of Appeal established an important new legal protection for unmarried partners who are wrongfully prevented from inheriting property from each other when one partner dies. The Court of Appeal ruled in favor of the surviving same-sex partner of a deceased Southern California man in a lawsuit alleging that the deceased partner’s sister Keep Reading…
A jury trial is set for Dec. 17 in the civil lawsuit filed by a Montana woman against the estate of an 81-year-old man who was obsessed with her genius daughter. Georgia Smith and her daughter, Promethea Pythaitha, are seeking damages from the estate of Thomas Kyros, of Florida, who was killed by officers on Keep Reading…
Four judicial races in Riverside County’s June 5 election have divided the region’s usually collegial legal community and brought out issues much larger than the names on the ballot. It’s lit up court hallway debates over the quality of the county’s judiciary, campaign money, judicial rulings and temperament, and even whether judicial elections are the Keep Reading…
Provo • Anna Gray said her fight for Gary Coleman’s estate isn’t about money. “There is no money in his estate,” said Gray, who was the CEO of the corporation formed by the late “Diff’rent Strokes” star. The Santaquin home Coleman purchased has since been foreclosed on by lenders. Instead, Gray has represented herself in Keep Reading…
MIAMI (CBS4) – The judge in the Narcy Novack murder trial has issued a gag order after the defendant made bizarre claims to the media in a jailhouse phone interview. “I already won because I’m innocent,” Narcy said in a phone interview with News 12 Westchester in New York. The judge issued the gag order Keep Reading…
In Knox v. Dean (— Cal.Rptr.3d —-, Cal.App. 4 Dist., April 24, 2012), a California Court of Appeal considered whether summary judgment in an elder abuse charge against a conservator of an elderly man was correct. The court ruled that because the caregiver’s defense was based on his mere assertion of the facts, and not a Keep Reading…
The battle for the estate of Gary Coleman will hit a Provo courtroom today in a two-day trial that pits the late actor’s former wife against the head of Coleman’s corporation. The case hinges on whether Coleman and his former spouse, Shannon Price, continued living as husband and wife even after their 2008 divorce until Keep Reading…
She may still use his last name on her Twitter handle, but Courtney Love can’t use her late husband’s likeness anymore. The troubled rock star lost control over Kurt Cobain’s estate to her estranged daughter, Frances Bean Cobain, according to documents uncovered by TheFix.com. The Hole frontwoman reportedly agreed to step down as the head of the End Keep Reading…
After a year and a half of waiting, the Arizona Court of Appeals has at long last taken up the request to do right by a 90-year-old lady who was “protected” right into the poorhouse. The court ruled that a probate court commissioner and the attorney whose law firms wound up with much of the Keep Reading…
It was great to see Gerry Beyer of the Wills, Trusts & Estates Prof Blog feature another post on the troubling estate action out of South Carolina involving “The Godfather of Soul” James Brown’s estate. The distinct appearance of completely disregarding Brown’s final and clearly stated/communicated wishes was a first sign of trouble. Past that, Keep Reading…
Estate of Denial® provides news, analysis and commentary on abusive practices occurring in probate courts and via probate instruments (wills, trusts, guardianships, powers of attorney). We provide original perspective to educate the public regarding this growing threat to both individual freedoms and property rights.Detroit— The Rosa and Raymond Parks Institute for Self Development and its co-founder, Elaine Steele, filed court action late Tuesday accusing a Wayne County probate judge and two court-appointed lawyers of conspiracy in the long-standing battle over the estate of civil rights icon Rosa Parks. Steele’s attorney, Steven G. Cohen, added he also has filed Keep Reading…
Lee Bailey’s eurweb.com (Electronic Urban Report) has once again picked up Sue Summer’s latest article from The Newberry Observer on the questionable actions surrounding administration of James Brown’s estate. The article is introduced as follows: For those who’ve been keeping track of the James Brown probate case, or if you’re simply interested in know where Keep Reading…
Forget women! Hell hath no fury like a lawyer scorned – or at least that would seem the case as per this latest Danny Tate posting at Impeachrandykennedy’s Blog. A conservatorship (guardianship) can strip a person of their individual liberty and property rights. While Nashville musician Danny Tate admits his struggle with alcohol and drug Keep Reading…
An estate lawyer accused of a “wrongful scheme” to steer money to himself from the estates of the late June M. Farrington and her surviving brother will pay back $410,000 as part of a settlement. Estate lawyer Stephen M. Newman also resigned as executor and trustee of all of the estates and trusts he set Keep Reading…
Shannon Price failed to prove that she and Gary Coleman had a common-law marriage after their 2009 divorce. Fourth District Judge James R. Taylor ruled Monday that while Price had lived in the former “Diff’rent Strokes” star’s home after their marriage ended, the relationship failed to meet the state’s standard for a common-law marriage. “There Keep Reading…
Receivership denied in debt action against Temple mayor (TX)
“Denied at this time” was the ruling Friday by Bell County 169th District Judge Gordon Adams regarding an application of turnover relief and appointment of a receiver to satisfy a judgment of at least $400,000 owed by Temple Mayor Bill Jones to Jencer Investments, Inc. Through this action, Jencer sought to satisfy the debt by Keep Reading…