Estate and Trust Dispute Center of Ohio

Adam M. Fried and Franklin C. Malemud have been invited to participate on a panel for an upcoming CLE webinar hosted by Strafford. Entitled "Trust and Probate Challenges: Minimizing and Litigating Claims of Undue Influence, Fraud, Capacity and Mistakes," this webinar will be held on Thursday, January 18th from 1 pm-2:30 pm EST. The format will offer an interactive Q&A session as well.

This CLE webinar will prepare estate planning counsel to litigate challenges to the will or trust documents. Our panelists will discuss the substantive bases for challenging wills and trusts, differing procedural requirements, and handling difficult evidentiary issues.

Description

Estate planning counsel must be vigilant in developing and honing their litigation practice. Counsel should focus on understanding the complexities involved in proving or defending against challenges to the will or trust document.

Evidence—identifying, collecting, managing and using evidence to prove or defend against challenges to a will or trust document—is the first and most difficult hurdle for counsel. Given the fact-sensitive nature of these challenges, counsel must be proficient in the use of witnesses, key documents and experts.

Counsel must also institute preventive techniques that anticipate and deter challenges to the client’s estate and trust plans. Our panel will outline their time-tested techniques for the drafting and execution phase of will and trust documents.

Listen as our distinguished panel discusses the most recent case law on will and trust litigation and the complex substantive bases for challenges. You will learn approaches that can either undermine, or minimize the potential undoing of, will and trust documents.

Program Outline:

1. Substantive bases for will and trust document litigation
   1. Undue influence
   2. Lack of capacity
   3. Fraud
2. Evidentiary challenges
   1. Effective use of witnesses
   2. Medical records
   3. Experts
3. Planning techniques to prevent or mitigate evidentiary and proof issues
4. Case law trends

Program Benefits:

The panel will review these and other key issues:

• What are the substantive bases for will and trust litigation?
• What are best practices to either prove or defend against a challenge to a will or trust?
• How can counsel effectively use various forms of evidence to his advantage?
• What proactive techniques can help eliminate or mitigate challenges to clients’ estate or trust plans?

Program Panelists:

Adam and Franklin will be joined by California-based trusts/estates attorney James A. Bush, of the Law Offices of James A. Bush.

For information on how to register, visit the Strafford website page for this event.