In Estate of Long, the plaintiff sued trustees and alleged that she was the only child of the decedent and asserted a cause of action for a will contest and for a declaratory judgment action in which she requested the trial court to declare that the residuary clause of the will admitted lapsed and
Presentation: Trust Issues in Divorce Proceedings
David F. Johnson presented to the Tarrant County Probate Bar Association on May 4, 2023, on the topic of “Trust Issues in Divorce Proceedings.” This program discussed some of the many trust issues that arise in divorce proceedings, including trust basics, voiding trusts due to fraud/constructive fraud/breach of fiduciary duty, characterization of trust assets
Court Holds That Probate Court Had Jurisdiction Over Inter Vivos Trust Dispute And That A Beneficiary Waived A Complaint About A “No Liability” Order For A Trustee
In Goepp v. Comerica Bank & Trust, N.A., the settlors created inter vivos trusts and their three children were the remainder beneficiaries. No. 03-19-00485-CV, 2021 Tex. App. LEXIS 5461 (Tex. App.—Austin July 9, 2021, no pet. history). The three children became co-trustees and then had disputes. They entered into a family settlement agreement, and had a corporate trustee appointed successor trustee. The corporate trustee then filed a “First Amended Petition for Settlement of Trustee’s Final Account and Order of No Liability.” Id. One of the children objected “to the Trustee’s Petition, complaining about the timing of certain preferential distribution payments, about the calculations of interest on the distributions, and that he ‘has yet to be reimbursed the monies owed to him for out of pocket expenses of durable medical equipment purchased on behalf of Iraida.’” Id. After the trial court entered the relief requested by the corporate trustee, several of the children appealed.
Continue Reading Court Holds That Probate Court Had Jurisdiction Over Inter Vivos Trust Dispute And That A Beneficiary Waived A Complaint About A “No Liability” Order For A Trustee
Court Holds That A Trustee Had The Power To Sell Trust Property To An Affiliate, Though Such An Act May Be In Breach Of A Duty
In Pense v. Bennett, the ward in a guardianship proceeding sued to invalidate the sale of real property from a trust created for his benefit to an affiliate of the trustee. No. 06-20-00030-CV, 2020 Tex. App. LEXIS 8002 (Tex. App.—Texarkana October 8, 2020, no pet.). The trial court granted summary judgment for the trustee, held that the sale was effective, but expressly refused to rule on a breach of fiduciary duty claim based on the transaction as it was pending in another proceeding. The ward appealed.
The court of appeals explained how the guardian had sought and obtained court approval for the creation of a management trust and the transfer of real property from the guardianship estate to the new trust. The trustee of that trust had the express authority to sell trust property:
Article VIII of the Trust Instrument lists the powers of the trustee. And, “[w]here the language of the trust instrument is unambiguous and expresses the intentions of the maker, the trustee’s powers are conferred by the instrument and neither the court nor the trustee can add or take away such power.” As pertinent here, the Trust Instrument authorized the trustee to: “[P]artition, exchange, release, convey or assign any right, title or interest of the trust in any real estate or personal property owned by the trust”; “[S]ell, exchange, alter, mortgage, pledge or otherwise dispose of trust property”; “[E]xecute and deliver any deeds, conveyances, assignments, leases, contracts, stock or security transfer powers, or any other written instrument of any character appropriate to any of the powers or duties herein conferred on the Trustee”; and “[H]old title to investments in the name of the Trustee or a nominee.”
In addition to these powers specified in the Trust Instrument, the Texas Trust Code authorizes “a trustee [to] exercise any powers . . . that are necessary or appropriate to carry out the purpose of the trust.” Those powers include the power to “contract to sell, sell and convey, or grant an option to sell real or personal property at public auction or private sale for cash or for credit or for part cash and part credit, with or without security.”
Court Had Jurisdiction To Declare That The Majority Of Co-Trustees Had The Authority To Sell Trust Property And The Declaration Was Proper
In Duncan v. O’Shea, three co-trustees brought a declaratory judgment action against a fourth co-trustee, seeking a declaration that the sale of trust real property was valid over the objection of the fourth co-trustee. No. 07-19-00085-CV, 2020 Tex. App. LEXIS
Court Rejected A Trustee’s Objection To Personal Jurisdiction In His Individual Capacity But Affirmed The Objection In His Capacity As Trustee
In Hanschen v. Hanschen, a trustee challenged a default judgment. No. 05-19-01134-CV, 2020 Tex. App. LEXIS 4075 (Tex. App.—Dallas May 28, 2020, no pet. history). The family sued the trustee in his personal capacity and in his capacity as trustee for breaching fiduciary duties. While the trustee was in Texas, the family served him
Court Held That Statutory Probate Court Had Jurisdiction To Grant A Rule 202 Pre-Suit Deposition
In In the Estate of Nicholas, the temporary administrator of an estate and the decedent’s mother filed a Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 202 petition concerning a shootout at a residence by the City of Houston Police Department. No. 14-19-00716-CV, 2020 Tex. App. LEXIS 2532 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.] March 26, 2020, no pet.
Court Held That Statutory Probate Court Had Sole Jurisdiction Over Claims Against The Estate
In Hawes v. Peden, a client sued a deceased attorney’s estate and her law firm in district court due to the attorney failing to finish the representation before her death. No. 06-19-00053-CV, 2019 Tex. App. LEXIS 10841 (Tex. App.—Texarkana December 16, 2019, no pet. history). The law firm filed a plea to the jurisdiction,
Trial Court Lacked Jurisdiction To Alter Its Previous Probate Order, and An Administrator Waived Any Challenge To A Damages Finding
In In the Estate of Brazda, the trial court found an administrator guilty of neglecting to timely distribute the property and ordered the administrator to pay one of the heir’s damages for the neglect. No. 01-18-00324-CV, 2019 Tex. App. LEXIS 5924 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st Dist.] July 11, 2019, no pet. history). The administrator moved for reconsideration of the damages order, the trial court later entered written orders reconsidering and removing the personal liability against the administrator. The complaining heir appealed. The court of appeals held that the trial court lacked jurisdiction to enter the orders reconsidering and removing the damages against the administrator because the original order awarding the damages was final and appealable in its own right and because the trial court lost plenary power over that order before the time that it entered the written reconsideration orders.
Continue Reading Trial Court Lacked Jurisdiction To Alter Its Previous Probate Order, and An Administrator Waived Any Challenge To A Damages Finding
Court Held That Heirs Had Standing To Participate In Estate Even After They Received The Assets They Were Due
In In re Estate of Daniels, after the decedent’s death, his wife and his other heirs filed competing applications for independent administration of his estate. No. 06-18-00049-CV, 2019 Tex. App. LEXIS 2905 (Tex. App.—Texarkana April 11, 2019). After the homestead property was set aside and the temporary administrator conveyed the interests in that property