Appellate Court Rejected Ordering That Payment Of Fees And Costs Should Come From Personal Representative’s Attorney. In the probate area, Estate of Anderson, Case No. A161729 (1st Dist., Div. 1 Aug. 17, 2021) (unpublished) confirms the general rule that routine and extraordinary probate attorney’s fees are normally payable out of the probate estate. These […]
CCP § 1026 Was The Governing Costs Allocation Statute Regarding SLAPP Fee Award. Although this case is must reading for probate practitioners on the scope of actions for which “no contest” clauses encompass, Cadena v. Vose, Case No. F080428 (5th Dist. July 28, 2021) (unpublished) shows how fees awardable under the SLAPP statute can
Any Argument Was Circular—Subject Matter Jurisdiction Win Did Not Mean Fee Request Evaporated, So A Remand Was In Order. A beneficiary won a successful defense to a trustee’s effort to enforce a settlement agreement on the basis that the probate court lacked subject matter jurisdiction to enforce that agreement, but the beneficiary was denied
No Basis For Fees Under No-Contest Clause Because Trust And Its Terms Were Not Contested, And Plaintiff Forfeited Argument For Fees Under Prob. Code § 17211(b) By Not Raising It Below. In Haley v. Konatich, Case No. A160725 (1st Dist., Div. 2 June 29, 2021) (unpublished), three siblings were the beneficiaries of their late
Trustee’s Opposition To Remainder Beneficiaries’ Petition For An Accounting Was Without Reasonable Cause And Was In Bad Faith. Trust beneficiaries normally – even if they prevail – pay their own attorney fees when challenging a trustee’s conduct. However, as the saying goes, there is an exception to every rule. Pursuant to Prob. Code §
Sisters Were Previously Found To Be “Vexatious Litigants” Under Code Civ. Proc. § 391(b), Forfeited Claims On Appeal By Failing To Raise Them In The Trial Court And Failing To Follow Appellate Procedures, And Sought To Relitigate Claims Previously Decided By The Appellate Panel. Family members were involved in disputes over their deceased mother’s
Putative Spouse Failed To Show She Had A Legal Marriage With The Respondent Under Indian Law, Based On A Res Judicata Finding In A Prior Conservatorship Petition Proceeding. The problem for putative spouse and her attorney in Nijjar v. Nijjar, Case No. F078265 (5th Dist. June 10, 2021) (unpublished) is that they earlier lost
Trustee Removal Petition Fees Are Discretionary In Nature. In Albrecht v. Albrecht, Case No. B306601 (2d Dist., Div. 4 June 7, 2021; posted June 8, 2021) (unpublished), successor trustee appealed a probate court’s order declining to award fees for an opposing side’s demurrer to a petition to remove the trustee. Beneficiary moved for fees
Costs Award Was Not Under General Equitable Powers, But Section 1002—Which Has No Bad Faith Requirement. In McClatchy v. Pruitt, Case No. A160367 (1st Dist., Div. 5 May 4, 2021) (unpublished), trust income beneficiary lost a fiduciary duty petition against certain current and former trustees, with the lower court awarding trustees some litigation costs
Collision Between Family Law And Probate Principles Came Out In Favor Of Section 2030. In Marriage of Wendt and Pullen, Case No. C084083 (3d Dist. Apr. 28, 2021) (published), the Third District encountered the intersection of Family Code section 2030’s need-based fees award statute with Probate Code/spendthrift provisions relating to trust administration practices (including
