Texas Fiduciary Litigator

The Intersection of Texas Courts and the Fiduciary field

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By: Winstead PC

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David Fowler Johnson
Joseph Regan
Winstead

Latest from Texas Fiduciary Litigator

In Delgado v. Garza, the plaintiffs sued for breach of a warranty of title, trespass to try title, and other related claims all stemming from a land transaction between an ancestor of the Salinases and an ancestor of the Garzas. No. 13-15-00344-CV, 2018 Tex. App. LEXIS 9619 (Tex. App.—Corpus Christi November 27, 2018, no pet. history). After a bench trial, the court signed a judgment in favor of the Garzas on all causes of action.…
In Estate of Luce, the court of appeals affirmed a trial court’s admitting a will to probate where the decedent did not personally sign it and only communicating his desires by blinking. No. 02-17-00097-CV, 2018 Tex. App. LEXIS 9341 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth November 15, 2018, no pet. history). The testator was in a serious accident that left him a quadriplegic. A week after he was admitted to the hospital, he was intubated, which rendered him…
In In re Macy Lynne Quintanilla Trust, a settlor created three trusts for his children in 2014. No. 04-17-00753-CV2018 Tex. App. LEXIS 8223 (Tex. App.—San Antonio October 10, 2018, no pet. history). The trust agreements named Perry as trustee and West as trust protector. The trust agreements gave the trust protector the power to remove the trustee and appoint a successor trustee. After the settlor and the trust protector had a falling out, the trust…
In Fletcher v. Whitaker, a brother withdrew $25,000 from a joint bank account while the owner of the funds (decedent) was still alive. No. 02-17-00138-CV, 2018 Tex. App. LEXIS 8329 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth October 11, 2018, no pet. history). The parties to the joint account were the decedent and his sister in law. The brother was the decedent’s agent under a power-of-attorney document and had the authority to do banking transactions. That relationship also meant…
In Gilmore v. Rotan, a testamentary trust’s beneficiaries sued the trustees in 2015 for making a transfer of trust property in 2003 that was evidenced by a deed filed in 2010. No. 11-16-00253-CV, 2018 Tex. App. LEXIS 7705 (Tex. App.—Eastland September 20, 2018, no pet. history).  The beneficiaries claimed that the trustees engaged in self-dealing when they transferred the real property. The beneficiaries acknowledged that they each received $76,693.55 from the estate of the primary…
In In the Interest of K.K.W., an ex-wife sued an ex-husband and the trustee of a trust that they created for breaches of fiduciary duty and sought to remove the trustee, among other claims, arising out of the trustee’s alleged unfair distribution of trust assets. No. 05-16-00795-CV, 2018 Tex. App. LEXIS 6539 (Tex. App.—Dallas August 20, 2018). The trial court granted a summary judgment for the ex-husband and trustee, and the ex-wife appealed. The trustee…
In Cruz v. Ghani, a limited partner sued a general partner over breach of fiduciary duty claims arising from, among other allegations, that the general partner should not have compensated himself from the business in addition to regular distributions. No. 05-17-00566-CV, 2018 Tex. App. LEXIS 6557 (Tex. App.—Dallas August 20, 2018, no pet. history). The jury found that the general partner failed to comply with his fiduciary duties with respect to the payments made to…
In Graff v. 2920 Park Grove Venture, Ltd., an executor was sued after selling estate real estate because the executor allegedly sold the property for less than fair market value. No. 05-16-01411-CV, 2018 Tex. App. LEXIS 4266 (Tex. App—Dallas June 13, 2018, no pet. history). Among other claims and arguments, the plaintiff alleged that the executor had no authority to sell the property because the will was silent regarding the authority to sell real property.…
Thank you to everyone who joined us on September 18 for the webinar “Trustees’ Ability to Retain and Pay Attorneys in Texas.”  The recorded webinar link is available now.  If you are interested in joining our next complimentary webinar or presentation, please send your request to dfjohnson@winstead.com . David F. Johnson, lead writer for the Texas Fiduciary Litigator blog, discusses the following: 1) tips and suggestions for retaining and communicating with counsel and 2) a…
David F. Johnson presented his paper “Temporary Injunctive Relief in Texas” to the State Bar of Texas’s Advanced Civil Appellate Course in Austin, Texas, on September 6, 2018. David has handled many appeals from temporary injunctions.  He provided technical guidance on the complicated issues arising from these types of interlocutory appeals and also provided practical advice on whether such an appeal is advantageous or not.  The presentation paper and slides are attached below.   If you…