Insurance Broker Does Not Ordinarily Owe Fiduciary Duties To A Client
In Hitchcock Indep. Sch. Dist. v. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., a school district sued it insurance broker for failing to obtain insurance policies that did not have arbitration and choice-of-law...
View ArticleAdministrator Of An Estate Has The Power To Seek The Partition Of Community...
In Estate of Tillotson, an administrator of a decedent’s estate filed a turn over motion to have the decedent’s husband turn over the decedent’s community property interest in certain accounts. No....
View ArticleBusiness Divorce: Partnership Agreement Was Invalid Where It Was Entered Into...
In Adam v. Marcos, an attorney and his client agreed to a joint venture/partnership. No. 14-18-00450-CV, 2021 Tex. App. LEXIS 2060 (Tex. App.—Houston March 18, 2021, no pet. history). The attorney sued...
View ArticleCourt Properly Admitted A Will To Probate Where The Evidence Did Not...
In Neal v. Neal, the decedent died leaving three sons. No. 01-19-00427-CV, 2021 Tex. App. LEXIS 2051 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st Dist.] March 18, 2021, no pet. history). She had several wills in the last...
View ArticleCo-Trustees Who Managed A Texas Trust With A Texas Beneficiary Had Sufficient...
In Alexander v. Marshall, the original trustee was the beneficiary’s mother and the wife of the beneficiary’s father, who was the settlor. No. 14-18-00425-CV, 2021 Tex. App. LEXIS 1952 (Tex....
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Distributions from Trusts in Texas: Part One of a Two Part Series
David F. Johnson, lead writer for the Texas Fiduciary Litigator blog, discusses in this two part series many of the interesting and complex issues that arise from trustees making trust distributions to...
View ArticleTexas Legislature Extends The Rule Against Perpetuities To 300 Years For Trusts
The Texas Legislatures recently passed a bill that takes effect on September 1, 2021 that extends the rule against perpetuities to 300 years for trusts. The Legislature forwarded the bill (HB 654) to...
View ArticleTexas Supreme Court Holds That A Beneficiary May Not Accept Any Benefit From...
In In the Estate of Johnson, a child of the decedent accepted over $143,000 from the decedent’s estate and then decided to challenge the will due to mental capacity and undue influence. No. 20-0424,...
View ArticleCourt Reversed Temporary Injunction Against Co-Trustees
In Marshall v. Marshall, a beneficiary sued the original trustee and five co-trustees of two trusts regarding claims that they breached fiduciary duties. No. 14-17-00930-CV, 2021 Tex. App. LEXIS 1949...
View ArticleCourt Upheld A Release In A Family Settlement Agreement That Protected A...
In Austin Trust Co. v. Houren, beneficiaries of a trust executed a family settlement agreement with the trustee and the former trustee’s estate. No. 14-19-00387-CV, 2021 Tex. App. LEXIS 1955 (Tex....
View ArticleBusiness Divorce: Exiting Member of LLC May Still Owe Fiduciary Duties
In Villareal v. Saenz, two co-owners of a limited liability company sued each other regarding conduct surrounding a business divorce. 5-20-CV-00571-OLG-RBF, 2021 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 94183 (W.D. Tex. May...
View ArticleCourt Holds That An Executor May Breach Duties In Making A Non-Pro Rata...
In In re Estate of Stewart, siblings filed claims regarding the administration of their father’s estate. No. 04-20-00103-CV, 2021 Tex. App. LEXIS 3897 (Tex. App.—San Antonio May 19, 2021, no pet....
View ArticleWife’s Fraudulent Transfer Claim Against Husband For Transferring Business...
In Austin v. Mitchell, a wife filed suit alleging her ex-husband fraudulently transferred a portion of his limited partnership interest in a family limited partnership to a trust for the benefit of his...
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Presentation: The More The Merrier? Issues Arising From Co-Trustees...
David Johnson presented his paper “The More The Merrier? Issues Arising From Co-Trustees Administering Trusts” to the State Bar of Texas’s Advanced Estate Planning and Probate Course on June 9, 2021....
View ArticleBusiness Divorce: Court Affirms Jury Finding That A Manager Did Not Breach...
In Trinh v. Cent. River Healthcare Group, a brother sued his sister over the management of a PLLC. No. 03-19-00393-CV, 2021 Tex. App. LEXIS 4542 (Tex. App.—Austin June 9, 2021, no pet. history). The...
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Presentation: Breach of Fiduciary Duty Claims Against Trustees/Managers of...
David F. Johnson presented “Breach of Fiduciary Duty Claims Against Trustees/Managers of Closely-Held Businesses” with Kenneth J. Fair of Wright Close & Barger, LLP, on July 22, 2021, for Strafford...
View ArticleCourt Discusses De Facto Trustee Status In Texas
In Bird v. Carl C. Anderson, a trust beneficiary sued a defendant for usurping a trustee’s role and breaching fiduciary duties as a de facto trustee. No. 03-21-00140-CV, 2021 Tex. App. LEXIS 5036 (Tex....
View ArticleRelative Had Standing To Assert Slayer Statute And Declaration Regarding...
In Lawrence v. Bailey, a son killed his parents with a sledge hammer. No. 01-19-00799-CV, 2021 Tex. App. LEXIS 4716 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st Dist.] June 15, 2021, no pet. history). The son was a named...
View ArticleShareholder Agreements Are Very Powerful In Texas: Parties Should Carefully...
The owners of a corporation may enter into shareholder agreements. In Richie, the Texas Supreme Court stated: “Shareholders of closely-held corporations may address and resolve such difficulties by...
View ArticleTexas Court Does Not Have Personal Jurisdiction Over A Trustee Of A Trust...
In JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. v. Campbell, a member of a limited partnership sued other partners, including a trustee of a trust, to dissolve the partnership. No. 09-20-00161-CV, 2021 Tex. App. LEXIS...
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Business Divorce: Minority Shareholder Rights In Texas
David F. Johnson presented his paper “Business Divorce: Minority Shareholder Rights In Texas” to the State Bar of Texas’s Business Disputes Course on September 2-3, 2021. This presentation addressed...
View ArticleA Limitation-Of-Liability Clause May Or May Not Be Enforceable For Breach Of...
Parties often add limitation-of-liability clauses to their agreements. These types of clauses can purport to limit a party’s claims or damages or both. Damage-limitation clauses can take many...
View ArticleCorporate Trustee’s Statements May Suffice For A Statutory Accounting
Trust beneficiaries often request a corporate trustee to prepare a statutory accounting. The Texas Trust Code in Section 113.151 provides that a beneficiary may request a written statement of accounts....
View ArticleShareholder Agreements Are Very Powerful In Texas: Parties Should Carefully...
The owners of a corporation may enter into shareholder agreements that address and resolve many disputes. For example, the Texas Supreme Court noted: “Shareholders of closely-held corporations may...
View ArticleCourt Holds That Shareholder Derivative Suit May Proceed Against An Officer...
In Novedea Sys. v. Colaberry, Inc., co-founders of a business discussed terms of a buy-out, but ended up in litigation. No. 6:20-cv-00180-JDK, 2021 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 152372 (E. D. Tex. August 13, 2021)....
View ArticleCourt Holds That Promissory Note Did Not Allow Partial Conversion To Equity
In Hotze v. In Mgmt., LLC, family members sued each other over control of a family business. No. 14-18-00995-CV, 2021 Tex. App. LEXIS 5821 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.] July 22, 2021, no pet....
View ArticleCourt Reversed Trial Court On Interpretation Of Trust Regarding Per Stirpes...
In In the Interest of Riley Family Revocable Trust, a trustee filed suit for a declaration regarding who takes in the distribution of remaining trust property. No. 13-20-00084-CV 2021 Tex. App. LEXIS...
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FSIG Webinar – Distributions from Trusts in Texas: Part Two
David F. Johnson, lead writer for the Texas Fiduciary Litigator blog, discusses in this two part series many of the interesting and complex issues that arise from trustees making trust distributions to...
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Presentation: Practical Issues Concerning Power of Attorney Transactions
David F. Johnson presented his paper “Practical Issues Concerning Power of Attorney Transactions” to the Annual Legal Conference 2021 hosted by the Texas Bankers Association and the Southwest...
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Presentation: Fiduciary Litigation Update 2020-2021
David Johnson presented his paper entitled “Fiduciary Litigation Update 2020-2021” to the Texas Bankers Association’s Wealth Management & Trust Conference on September 30, 2021. This presentation...
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