When someone marries into a family that owns and operates a business, there can be questions as to whether the new spouse has any rights or claims to the family business. Imagine the scenario where parents create a business and gift shares to their child. Their child then gets married. The couple is married for […] The post Surviving Spouse Claims Interest in Husband’s Family Business appeared first on Kreig… Continue reading Surviving Spouse Claims Interest in Husband’s Family Business

You own several LLC interests. Some are owned outright. Some are owned by other LLC’s that you own. There are valid reasons for this, from asset protection to estate planning. But then you die. Then the survivors read your will. And guess what? You either forgot to update the will for changes you made when […] The post Do Subsidiary Bequests Include Parent Entity Ownership of the Same Sub? appeared… Continue reading Do Subsidiary Bequests Include Parent Entity Ownership of the Same Sub?

Family disputes during probate administration often escalate when siblings disagree about what should happen to the family property. One child may want to keep the homestead in the family, while another sees it as an unproductive burden that should be sold. These conflicts become even more complex when a court has already removed the family […] The post The Partition Action is a Remedy to Request in Probate Administrations, Not… Continue reading The Partition Action is a Remedy to Request in Probate Administrations, Not a Right

You might think that receiving an ineritance is easy. How could that be complicated? The maxum that nothing is easy is fitting. When a family member inherits property, they may be inheriting a build-in legal problem. This often happens when property is left to more than one person and one person wants to keep the […] The post Executor’s Power to Sell Trumps Partition Action for Heirs’ Property appeared first… Continue reading Executor’s Power to Sell Trumps Partition Action for Heirs’ Property

It is common for families to transfer real estate from one generation to another. This often results in probate disputes, particularly when ownership questions are not fully discussed and the transfers are discovered years after the person who made the transfer died. These situations become particularly complex when the disputed property has connections to a […] The post When Texas Real Estate Passes Outside of Probate appeared first on Kreig… Continue reading When Texas Real Estate Passes Outside of Probate

Nursing home negligence cases often begin with a family’s discovery that their loved one suffered preventable harm while under medical care. These discoveries are often not made until after the loved one dies. When this happens, Texas law provides specific procedures for holding healthcare providers accountable. A cornerstone of these procedures is the expert report […] The post Nursing Home Negligence Cases: The Importance of Expert Reports appeared first on… Continue reading Nursing Home Negligence Cases: The Importance of Expert Reports

Families who lose loved ones often find themselves in disagreements about property that may have been improperly transferred before a loved one’s death. When these disputes arise, the question arises as to who has the legal authority to challenge these transfers? Is it limited to the estate’s personal representative or can the heirs bring suit […] The post When Can Heirs File Suit on Behalf of a Texas Estate? appeared… Continue reading When Can Heirs File Suit on Behalf of a Texas Estate?

When a probate court makes decisions during the administration of an estate, parties who disagree with those decisions may want to appeal right away. If the probate court makes a decision that negatively impacts the party’s rights, time may be of the essence to fix it. From an economic or practical perspective, a delayed fix […] The post Most Probate Court Orders Are Not Immediately Appealable appeared first on Kreig… Continue reading Most Probate Court Orders Are Not Immediately Appealable

Courts possess significant powers to impose sanctions on attorneys who improperly abuse legal processes. Various procedural rules and statutes grant courts discretion to levy monetary sanctions when attorneys engage in frivolous litigation tactics or misconduct. As the Brenners v. Green, No. 06-20-00044-CV (Tex. App. – Texarkana [6th Dist.] 2020) case exemplifies, determining appropriate sanctions requires […] The post When are Sanctions Levied Towards Attorneys Applicable During Court? appeared first on… Continue reading When are Sanctions Levied Towards Attorneys Applicable During Court?

If someone dies in Texas and they left a handwritten written document that gives away their property on death, can that document be a valid will?  What if the person did not sign the will? The answer is often, “yes,” as Texas law allows for handwritten wills.  The courts will often admit the wills even […] The post Can an Unsigned Handwritten Document Count as a Will? appeared first on… Continue reading Can an Unsigned Handwritten Document Count as a Will?