Many families keep the same financial advisor for decades, even when that advisor changes firms three or four times. Mom’s investment account follows the advisor from one brokerage to the next, and nobody thinks twice about it. Then Mom dies, and her will leaves “my account at Firm X ending in 1234” to specific people. […]
The post When a TOD Account…
A parent dies. Years later, the family learns that money they expected to inherit went into a trust that leaves them out. Suspicion turns into a lawsuit. But before anyone gets to the question of who misled whom, a more basic problem can derail the case: are these family members even the right people to […]
The post When Heirs Sue Too…
When a parent dies with a modest estate and no will, Texas gives families a shortcut. Instead of opening a full administration, the heirs can file a small estate affidavit, get it approved by the probate court, and collect the property without anyone being appointed administrator. Often a few family members make it even simpler […]
The post When a Small Estate…
Most parents assume the custody fights end when a child turns eighteen. That isn’t always true. When an adult child can’t manage his own affairs, divorced parents can end up back in court, this time fighting over who gets appointed guardian. The stakes are the same as a custody case: medical care, where the child […]
The post When a Guardianship Application…
Business partners often agree that whoever outlives the other gets the first shot at buying out the deceased partner’s share. Ranching families do it. Oil and gas investors do it. Owners of closely held companies do it. The surviving partner assumes the deal will simply play out once the other partner passes away. But what […]
The post When the Probate Exception…
A parent dies and two pieces of paper show up, each claiming to be the last word on who gets what. One child produces a will signed years ago. Someone else produces a will signed shortly before the death. Both cannot be right, and the fight that follows is rarely about money alone. It is […]
The post Stay Pending Mandamus: When…
Most families argue about who should handle a parent’s estate. Usually the fight is about competence, or money, or an old grudge nobody has let go of. Every so often the fight is about something much harder: one of the people asking to be put in charge has already hurt somebody else in the family. […]
The post Unsuitable Executor: When a…
When a parent dies and a new spouse takes control of the estate, the adult children from the first marriage usually assume they get a say. They are the decedent’s children, after all. So they file something in the probate court objecting to the new spouse serving as executor — and get told they have […]
The post Trust Amendment Locks a…
Family fights over real estate are some of the hardest cases we see. A parent dies, one child ends up with the land, and everyone else is left wondering how that happened. The suspicion is real and sometimes it is justified. But suspecting you were cheated and proving it in court are two very different […]
The post When Heirs Go It…
Families often treat a disclaimer as a courtesy. One heir signs a piece of paper saying he does not want anything, everyone agrees the estate should go to somebody else, and the paperwork moves. It feels like a housekeeping step. It is not. A disclaimer is one of the most powerful documents in Texas probate, […]
The post Affidavit Disclaimer in Texas…
