Of naturally, mistakes of expression allegedly resulting from lawyer errors may give rise to lawsuits against the drafting lawyer . Mistakes in Execution of a Will The law of rigorous conformity requires that a will be executed in accord with statutory formalities or the will can not be admitted to probate.
Feb 08, 2019 · Lawyers make mistakes. Sometimes those mistakes have consequences. Ultimately, a viable legal malpractice claim will turn on the facts of the case; but here are three basic things to consider in determining if an attorney’s mistake justifies a …
Many people have heard of the probate and estate settlement process but wonder what it is and what the probate process entails. To put it simply, probate is the process the probate court uses to make sure the deceased person’s creditors are paid through estate settlement and that anything left goes to the deceased’s beneficiaries.
Complex probates and estate settlements are made all the worse by the fact that the family is in a state of mourning and under a great deal of stress. The last thing most families want to deal with at a time like this is the probate court system. What follows below is a list of common mistakes that can be costly if not avoided. No Outcome in Mind
To put it simply, probate is the process the probate court uses to make sure the deceased person’s creditors are paid through estate settlement and that anything left goes to the deceased’s beneficiaries. ...
If the deceased’s estate has debts or the deceased owned real estate some form of probate estate administration will be needed. Preparing an accurate inventory of assets , which should only reflect assets that have actually been collected and placed under the control of the administrator or executor, is important. One must account for everything and understand where and how things will pass to the deceased’s heirs either under the Will or by intestate succession. For example, does the estate include jewelry, collections or family heirlooms to be passed on? Are there oil, gas or mineral rights or royalties that need to be disposed of?
If you are not comfortable with or not used to accounting and balance sheets, it makes sense to enroll a professional such as a book keeper or CPA to help you . At the time of settling the estate all numbers must align and make sense. If not, you might get objections from the heirs or maybe even a judge.
If you lost money because of the way your lawyer handled your case, consider suing for malpractice. Know, however, that it is not an easy task. You must prove two things:
If that doesn't work, as a last resort you may need to sue your lawyer in small claims court, asking the court for money to compensate you for what you've spent on redoing work in the file or trying to get the file.
Every state has an agency responsible for licensing and disciplining lawyers. In most states, it's the bar association; in others, the state supreme court. The agency is most likely to take action if your lawyer has failed to pay you money that you won in a settlement or lawsuit, made some egregious error such as failing to show up in court, didn't do legal work you paid for, committed a crime, or has a drug or alcohol abuse problem.
If you can't find out what has (and has not) been done, you need to get hold of your file. You can read it in your lawyer's office or ask your lawyer to send you copies of everything -- all correspondence and everything filed with the court or recorded with a government agency.
If you're not satisfied with your lawyer's strategy decisions or with the arguments the lawyer has been making on your behalf, you may even want to go to the law library and do some reading to educate yourself about your legal problem.
If you want to sue for legal malpractice, do it as quickly as possible. A common defense raised by attorneys sued for malpractice is that the client waited too long to sue. And because this area of the law can be surprisingly complicated and confusing, there's often plenty of room for argument.
But all states except Maine, New Mexico, and Tennessee do have funds from which they may reimburse clients whose attorneys stole from them.
If an executor breaches their fiduciary duty, there are a number of consequences. They may be removed from their position by the probate court. If the estate includes personal property that is required to be sold, and the personal representative fails to do so, there may be a steep financial penalty. If the personal representative keeps, consumes, or disposes of the asset, he or she may be held liable for double the appraised value of that personal property. Heirs or beneficiaries may also file a civil suit against an executor for breach of duty.
A personal representative is a fiduciary: they stand in a position of trust, ethically and legally, to the estate and its heirs. This fiduciary duty means that the personal representative is bound to act in the best interests of the estate, even if those run counter to the personal representative's own interests.