Powers of attorney and trust instruments have each been the subject of many an estate plan. They each have also been the subject of multiple estate litigations. In combination, the two have served as fodder for controversies surrounding the agent’s authority over the trust and its terms. Two decisions — Matter of Goetz and Matter of Perosi v. LiGreci — have addressed the issue, albeit with different results. Both decisions provide valuable instruction for drafters and litigators. Ilene Cooper discusses these cases in our latest entry.
Continue Reading Lessons to be Learned From the Power of Attorney
January 2017
Sharp as a Tack . . . Clear as a Bell
By Frank T. Santoro on
Posted in Probate
Very often, when the proponent of a will (and sometimes even the attorney-draftsperson or witness) is questioned about the decedent’s mental state and the decedent’s instructions, the reflexive response is that the decedent was “as sharp as a tack” and was “as clear as a bell.” But overselling a decedent’s capacity and clarity of communication using tired metaphors may result in the trier of fact becoming suspicious of the proponent, perhaps perceiving the proponent as dishonest where other evidence reveals that the decedent likely had diminished capacity. Frank Santoro discusses the issue of testamentary capacity in our latest entry.
Continue Reading Sharp as a Tack . . . Clear as a Bell