I have been approached by numerous potential clients asking if I can help with the restructuring of their mortgages. The short answer is that I can provide no assurance regarding a refinancing. The rules are murky, and the literature indicates that lenders are not providing meaningful reductions. A recent article by Prof. Brent White from […]
A decision handed down this month involved an all-too-common situation. In King v. Johnson, 2009 DJDAR 15871 (Nov. 9, 2009), the husband provided for a testamentary trust. After the husband’s death in 1991, his widow became the trustee. The widow later suffered from declining health. One of the daughters was apparently close to her mother. […]
A growing body of case law during the past 20 years has addressed the issue of whether and when corporate directors owe fiduciary duties to creditors. A California appellate court has finally weighed in on this issue, and provided clear guidance on the question. (We can only hope that the California Supreme Court will not […]
The diverse use of trusts is represented in a recent case from the federal Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. In Gale v. Carnrite, 559 F.3d 359 (5th Cir. 2009), the dispute involved tax liabilities arising from the sale of membership interests in a Nevada limited liability company. The underlying facts were as follows: In 1999, […]
A recent federal case started off with an intriguing headnote – “Lawyer does not breach of fiduciary duty or contracts by advising termination of co-counsel where advice was privileged and protected by agreements.” From the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, no less. In the end, the court tackled the issues on narrow grounds, giving rise […]