A recent bill (H.B. 1552) has been submitted that would provide a trustee release relief for transactions described in an accounting where a beneficiary fails to timely object to the accounting and there is no fraud, intentional misrepresentation, or material omission. A similar bill was introduced in 2021, but the Legislature did not pass it. The new bill provides:
Enforcement Of Will/Trust Provisions Giving The Fiduciary The Power To Construe The Document
It is common for wills or trusts to provide that the fiduciary has the right to construe the document. For example, a provision may state that the fiduciary shall resolve any question regarding the construction, interpretation, or operation of the will/trust or any matter involving the administration of the estate/trust or any rights of any
Presentation: The More The Merrier: Issues Arising From Co-Trustees Managing Trusts
David Johnson presented his paper on “The More The Merrier: Issues Arising From Co-Trustees Managing Trusts” to the Tarrant County Probate Bar Association on September 16, 2022. This presentation addressed the benefits and drawbacks to co-trustee management, who can be a co-trustee, fiduciary duties, the duty to participate, the duty to cooperate, decision-making authority, delegation
Presentation: Voir Dire (In a Post COVID World)
David F. Johnson co-authored a paper entitled “Voir Dire (In a Post COVID World)” with Jason Smith of the Law Offices of Jason Smith for the State Bar of Texas’s Business Disputes Course, held in Austin, Texas, on September 15-16, 2022. The paper covered the waterfront of voir dire topics in Texas litigation, including preservation
Presentation: Fiduciary Compensation and Forfeiture
David Johnson presented his paper on “Fiduciary Compensation and Forfeiture” to the Southwest Association of Bank Counsel fall legal conference on September 15, 2022, in Fort Worth, Texas. David addressed a fiduciary’s duty of loyalty, statutory and common law precedent for compensation of trustees, factors for evaluating compensation, principal and income act, co-trustee issues, and
Presentation: Advising Trustees Who Manage Closely-Held Business Interests
David F. Johnson presented “Advising Trustees Who Manage Closely-Held Business Interest” to the WealthCounsel webinar on June 30, 2022.
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Trustee Quandary: Criminal Activity By A Beneficiary With Or On Trust Property
David F. Johnson had his article entitled “Trustee Quandary: Criminal Activity By A Beneficiary With Or On Trust Property,” published in the Texas Tech Estate Planning and Community Property Law Journal in the spring of 2022.
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Suing Attorneys In Texas For Participating in Fiduciary Breaches
It is not uncommon for an attorney to execute all or part of his or her client’s wishes, which may be in breach of a fiduciary duty owed by the client to a third party. The third party can certainly sue the client for breaching fiduciary duties. But can the third party also sue the attorney for participating in the client’s actions?
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Presentation: Undue Influence, Detecting Elder Abuse, and the Duty to Report Financial Exploitation
Author David F. Johnson recently presented his paper on “Undue Influence, Detecting Elder Abuse, and the Duty to Report Financial Exploitation” to the Austin Probate Bar Association in Austin, Texas, on May 20, 2022.
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Texas Passes A New Law To Punish Elder Financial Abuse
The Texas Legislature recently enacted a new law that criminalizes the financial abuse of the elderly. This is in response to the increasing financial attacks on the elderly. Effective September 1, 2021, the Texas Legislature added a penal statute entitled “Financial Abuse of Elderly Individual.”
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