The wife of the decedent and executor of his estate, who had asserted attorney-client privilege during discovery, could not then waive the privilege at trial unless the opposing litigants could first conduct discovery regarding the communications for which the privilege … Continue reading
Daniel Evans
With the release of the Chained Consumer Price Index (C-CPI-U) for August 2018, it’s possible to calculate various inflation adjustments for 2019. The following are the significant federal estate planning numbers, with the numbers for 2018 shown in parentheses: The … Continue reading
One of the most common capital transactions for estates is the sale of the decedent’s residence, and current tax law would seem to provide the greatest benefit to beneficiaries by claiming the expenses of that sale as part of that...
The Supreme Court has entered an order adopting a new Rule 510 of the Pennsylvania Rules of Judicial Administration that implements a new statewide electronic filing and tracking system for reports and inventories of guardians of adult incapacitated persons. “In … Continue reading
Chester Co. has amended the fee schedule of the Register of Wills in two ways: The filing fee for an affidavit of death pursuant to 20 Pa.C.S. § 925 is changed to $25.00. “Fee Bill for the Office of the … Continue reading
The Supreme Court updates from time to time (and the Disciplinary Board publishes in the Pennsylvania Bulletin) a list of the names of financial institutions which are “eligible institutions” in which lawyers may deposit funds held by the lawyer as … Continue reading
Probate of will and codicil was denied for lack of testamentary capacity that was supported by medical testimony and by evidence that the decedent had shown signs of memory loss and dementia before the execution of the will and trust, … Continue reading
The beneficiary of a putative will has standing to request a waiver of attorney-client privilege in a dispute over the validity of the will due to lack of testamentary capacity, allegations of fraud in the execution of a note by … Continue reading
In a dispute over legal fees paid by a trustee, the Orphans’ Court ordered the trustee to turn over to the beneficiaries unredacted invoices for legal fees paid and, on appeal, the Superior Court held that the order was not … Continue reading
Surviving husband had no rights to any properties conveyed by his deceased wife one month before her death despite his claims of “sweat equity” in maintaining and improving the properties during their marriage because there is no “de facto” tenancy … Continue reading