Brother of decedent was bequeathed the “Maujer rifle”, which is a typographical error for Mauser rifle of which the decedent owned 10. The Court held that the brother was entitled to all 10 Mauser rifles because of the wills ambiguity … Continue reading
Category Archives: Opinions
In affirming the denial of a petition to strike a default judgment, the Superior Court held that the civil division of the Court of Common Pleas had jurisdiction to enter a default judgment against an agent for the debts of … Continue reading
Under I.R.C. § 2206, an executor was entitled to recover a pro-rata portion of the federal estate tax attributable to life insurance paid to the decedent’s ex-wife, as well as interest paid on the tax, when the will directed that … Continue reading
Court-approved settlement between guardian of the estate of the decedent and one of the decedent’s children precluded claim against the child for funds of the decedent that had benefited the child during decedent’s incapacity. The court also found that the … Continue reading
Parental rights of both mother and father terminated under 23 Pa.C.S. § 2511 when 11 year old child had been in foster care for more than six months, both parents failed to make progress in correcting the conditions that led … Continue reading
A pre-1993 oral contract to make a will was found to have been established by the testimony of the beneficiary’s husband, brother, and nephew, and the beneficiary was found to have substantially performed her obligations under the contract when she … Continue reading
Declaratory judgment was appropriate to hold that second spouse, who had not elected against will executed before her marriage to the decedent, was entitled to an intestate share of the decedent’s revocable trust which was also executed before marriage, and … Continue reading
I feel somewhat vindicated by a recent order of the Supreme Court, which confirms my opinion that In re Estate of Briskman, 808 A.2d 928, 2002 PA Super 287 (2002), was wrongly decided. In Briskman, the Superior Court found that … Continue reading
The executor of a deceased trustee’s estate has sufficient standing to survive preliminary objections to a petition requesting records of charitable trusts when the executor has alleged (a) that the deceased trustee may have been entitled to compensation from the … Continue reading
An order of an Orphans’ Court denying an injunction against a personal representative prohibiting a sale of real or personal property of the decedent is interlocutory and not a collateral order and so not subject to appeal. Estate of Virginia … Continue reading