A trial court always has the power to reconsider its own decisions, without any requirement of manifest error or new evidence, and it was particularly appropriate for the Orphans’ Court to reconsider its order appointing an administrator of an estate … Continue reading
Daniel Evans
While the individual members of the “board of managers” of the educational center established by the donor have a proprietary right and interest in the their control over the donated funds, and so were indispensible parties to the litigation over … Continue reading
A permanent injunction issued by the Orphans’ Court was not outside of the scope requested, and was not impermissibly vague, overbroad, or imprecise, when a charitable organization formed by a fraternal organization petitioned for a declaration that it was “separate … Continue reading
Dauphin County has joined Butler and Westmoreland counties in adopting a general rule requiring the disclosure of the use of “generative artificial intelligence” (also known as “large language models”) in the preparation of any pleading or other filing submitted to … Continue reading
The Internal Revenue Service has published proposed regulations on the installment payments of federal income tax that may be payable on the gain realized in a qualified sale or exchange of farmland under I.R.C. section 1062. “Election To Pay in … Continue reading
It was not an abuse of discretion for the Register of Wills to appoint the decedent’s mother to administer her daughter’s estate, and not the father, and it was not an abuse of discretion for the Orphans’ Court to refuse … Continue reading
The Superior Court has affirmed the grant of summary judgement by the Orphans’ Court holding that the attempted exercise of a limited power of appointment was invalid because it was not to a “charity” as defined by the trust document. … Continue reading
The tax clause in the will executed by the decedent after his divorce from his first wife and before his marriage to his second wife directed that all death taxes be paid from the decedent’s revocable trust, and the clause … Continue reading
It was not an abuse of discretion for the Orphans’ Court to appoint the alleged incapacitated person’s granddaughter as his guardian, rather than the AIP’s nephew, when the nephew had a closer relationship with the AIP’s daughter (who had proposed … Continue reading
The Orphans’ Court Procedural Rules Committee has proposed a new Pa.R.O.C.P. 4.8 that would define “signature” for purposes of filings with the Orphans’ Court to include electronic copies of signatures and computer-generated signatures, and has proposed conforming changes to Rule … Continue reading