David F. Johnson, lead writer for The Texas Fiduciary Litigator blog, will examine the attorney-client privilege between a trustee and its attorney in detail. We will explore the extent of the privilege, the fiduciary exception that permits beneficiaries to access communications, and whether Texas acknowledges this exception. Additionally, we will cover joint-client and
David F. Johnson will address the complex issues surrounding a trustee’s duty to disclose and will compare Texas law and the Uniform Trust Code on this topic. He will address disclosure requirements under trust documents and their ability to limit or expand common-law disclosure requirements, silent trusts, statutory duties to disclose, statutory duties to prepare
David F. Johnson participated in a panel presentation entitled “The Baby-Boomer Generation & The Largest Succession of Wealth in History: The New Frontier in Asset Recovery?” for the Offshore Alert Miami Conference on April 24, 2023, in Miami, Florida, with Martin Kenney, Dr. Alexander Stein, and Rodrigo Callejas. The presentation discussed the incredible
Winstead Shareholder David F. Johnson participated in a panel presentation entitled “When One Is Not Enough: Dividing Fiduciary Powers and Dispositions” for the State Bar of Texas’s 29th Advanced Estate Planning Strategies on April 20, 2023, in Lake Tahoe, California, with Phillip Lindquist, Tanya E. Feinleib, and Michaelle Rafferty. The presentation discussed co-trustee management, fiduciary
David F. Johnson co-presented with Zachary S. Davis from Stoel Rives LLP, in Portland, Oregon, on “Limitation of Liability Clauses in Business Contracts: Limiting Potential Damages and Avoiding Pitfalls” on January 31, 2023, for national CLE provider Strafford. This CLE webinar was intended to guide business counsel and owners to draft and negotiate appropriate limitation
David F. Johnson presented “Trustee’s Obligation to Inform Beneficiaries: Avoiding Breach of Fiduciary Duty Claims” to a national audience on November 16, 2021, via Strafford publishing with his co-presenter Scott E. Rahn, founder of RMO LLP. A critical obligation for trustees of irrevocable trusts is the duty to inform beneficiaries of the trust’s existence and
David F. Johnson presented “Breach of Fiduciary Duty Claims Against Trustees/Managers of Closely-Held Businesses” with Kenneth J. Fair of Wright Close & Barger, LLP, on July 22, 2021, for Strafford Webinars to a national audience. This presentation covered various issues involved in a trustee owning an interest in a closely-held business when disputes arise. The
David F. Johnson recently published his article “Fiduciary Compensation and Forfeiture in Texas” in the Texas Tech Estate Planning and Community Property Law Journal. This article addresses many of the interesting issues that arise in trustee compensation disputes. The article addresses a trustee’s authority to compensation under the trust document, statutes, and common law, and
David F. Johnson presented his paper on “Administering A Trust In A Recession: Trust Loans To Beneficiaries” to the Houston Bar Association’s Probate and Estate Section on October 27, 2020 via a webinar format. 
This presentation addressed, among other things, a trustee’s authority to loan trust assets to beneficiaries, co-trustee issues, conflicts of interest, the
In Herring v. Am. Paper & Janitorial Prods., the plaintiff was a subcontractor who provided janitorial services for a bank and was also a depositor of the bank. No. H-17-3474, 2018 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 215765 (S.D. Tex. December 24, 2018). After the plaintiff’s representatives were found stealing food after a party, the plaintiff’s contract