Trusts and Estates
Ca. Trs. & Estates Quarterly 2020, Volume 26, Issue 2
Content
- California's Statutory Will Needs An Update To Keep Up With Duke
- Chairs of Section Subcommittees
- Editorial Board
- From the Chair
- Inside this Issue:
- Litigation Alert
- Now What? Enforcement and Collection of a Surcharge Order
- Smith V. Szeyller: Probate Court Authority For Attorneys' Fee Award Under the Substantial Benefit Doctrine For Successful Beneficiaries
- Tax Alert
- Transmutation By Deed In California Is a Risky Business
- Tips of the Trade: Propriety of Filing a Demurrer In Probate Court; Helpful Tips On Timing
- From the Editors-in-chief
FROM THE EDITORS-IN-CHIEF
By Carlena L. Tapella, Esq.,* and Thomas W. Shaver, Esq.**
The Quarterly Board welcomes its readers back to another issue. This issue will be a keeper for our Section members whose practice includes probate and trust litigation. It includes a number of articles addressing current cases and significant evolving issues in litigation law and practice.
This issue begins with an article by Denise Chambliss and James Cummins on the recent case of Smith v. Szeyller. The authors discuss the facts of that case that led to an award of attorneys’ fees when the litigation produced no financial benefit. That review is placed in the context of a larger review of the applicable equitable and statutory grounds for seeking a court award of fees.
Transmutation by deed in California is a risky business. Rosemary La Puma and Andrea Kushner discuss the reliance on form of title evidence in the recent cases of In re Marriage of Kushesh & Kushesh-Kaviani and In re Marriage of Begian & Sarajian, and how the findings in those cases create uncertainty in existing case law and public policy supporting transmutation. The article concludes with thoughtful approaches to the drafting and execution of transmutation agreements to ensure their enforceability.