Astor attorney’s disbarment: little too little, little too late
Lou Ann Anderson
March 1, 2010
www.EstateofDenial.com
Disbarment is the latest development in the saga of Francis X. Morrissey, the New York estate planning attorney who schemed to loot millions of dollars from Brooke Astor’s estate. In October 2009, Morrissey was convicted of four felony and one misdemeanor counts including [...]
Texas Bar exec board says “no” to PLI disclosure
Lou Ann Anderson
February 1, 2010
www.EstateofDenial.com
With a vote of 39 to 1, the State Bar of Texas Board of Directors voted Friday to recommend to the Supreme Court of Texas that legal clients not receive additional consumer protections that would flow from “customers” being informed [...]
Charities make claims against Davidson, Bishop estates
Lou Ann Anderson
January 24, 2010
www.EstateofDenial.com
In covering probate disputes here in Texas and elsewhere, a couple of interesting cases involving charities making claims against estates have recently been in the news. These aren’t cases like with the Astor, Helmsley or Glassell estates in which charitable organizations were undisputedly included in [...]
Prison indefinitely avoided by Astor estate looting son, attorney accomplice
Lou Ann Anderson
January 12, 2010
www.EstateofDenial.com
Anthony Marshall’s efforts to avoid jail are working. Though Marshall and estate attorney Francis Morrissey were each sentenced to prison for having looted the estate of Brooke Astor, Marshall’s mother, neither man appears destined to see the inside of [...]
Simon daughter sues shopping mall magnate’s widow over will
Lou Ann Anderson
January 11, 2010
www.EstateofDenial.com
The use of undue influence is a common accusation with regard to estate disputes. This same undue influence, however, has also been found as a common tactic used in estate looting actions. It certainly was a factor in the Astor estate [...]