Blog Posts By Category

In California, over the years, I have handled many cases involving disputes between family members over the estates of a deceased relative. Brothers against sisters, sisters against brothers, uncles ...

By California Trust Litigation Attorney – Ted Hankin Over the years I have watched many attorney-themed television programs. I understand, given the time allotted, one must take the case and try it to ...

So here was the situation; my client and her brother owned their mother’s residence as tenants in common ( California Civil Code §686 ). My client’s brother did not agree with the appraisal that was ...

Previously, I described sending a demand letter to the father of my clients, beneficiaries of their grandparents’ living trust. I demanded that the father, as trustee of their trusts, account to them ...

In my Orange County, California estate planning practice, I am constantly amazed at the greed shown by family members towards each other. Although I have been in practicing thirty years now with ...

Recall that my client’s half-sister now claims that they are not related … and counsel and I agreed to use a DNA laboratory to determine the likelihood of relationship. Problem: the presumed natural ...

So here is my client, fighting her half-sister in Superior Court of Los Angeles County North East District, over whether she qualifies an heir of her natural father’s estate under California Probate ...

So here is my client; her natural father died without a will and her half-sister claims the entire estate, alleging that my client did not satisfy the special circumstances required under California ...

In my Orange County, California estate planning practice, I am constantly amazed at the greed shown by family members towards each other. Although I have been in practicing thirty years now with ...

In my Orange County, California estate planning practice, I am constantly amazed at the greed shown by family members towards each other. Although I have been in practicing thirty years now with ...

In my last post, the person who I had accused of Undue Influence ( California Civil Code §1575 ), had taken the witness stand during the trial of the case. Recall that I had alleged that my client’s ...

As I described in my prior post, my client’s cousin, an elderly gentleman, appeared to have been taken in by his caregiver and was demanding that my client give up the checkbook and account that she ...

Every now and then I receive calls from clients where the resolution of their problem would at first appear to be a trip to probate court, but sometimes has a twist that takes me to the world of civil ...

In my last post, I described how my client and her brother came to own, as tenants in common ( California Civil Code §686 ), the single family residence of their mother. My client wanted her mother’s ...

As I stated in my last post, my client’s half-sister disputed whether my client and the half-sister were even related; DNA tissue was found at a hospital where my client’s natural father had been ...

The trust accounting had been filed with the Superior Court of Los Angeles County , Central Judicial District, but I had many questions concerning the entries on the accounting. What to do? Under ...

In my last post, the person who I had accused of Undue Influence ( California Civil Code §1575 ), had taken the witness stand during the trial of the case. Recall that I had alleged that my client’s ...

I have been describing in my prior two posts how it was that my client’s complaint, alleging Undue Influence California Civil Code §1575 (and, if brought today, Elder Abuse), came to trial in the ...

As I described in my prior post, my client’s cousin, an elderly gentleman, appeared to have been taken in by his caregiver and was demanding that my client give up the checkbook and account that she ...

It’s true. Sometimes referred to as “companion animals”, California Probate Code §15212 specifically provides for the creation of a trust to care for your beloved dog, cat or other companion animal ...

Virtually every decision regarding probate is based on title to or value of assets owned by the decedent. Title is important because ownership can transfer as a matter of law (e.g. joint tenancy with ...

In other words, must there be a full-on probate in California because the real property asset (assuming a value in excess of $20,000.00, no joint tenancy or transfer on death provision in the deed) ...

All of us at Messina & Hankin, LLP are pleased to congratulate attorney John A. Messina, Jr. for being included in Marquis Who's Who. Marquis Who's Who is a collection of biographical volumes that ...

It’s with great pleasure we announce that Attorney Theodore M. Hankin, partner at Messina & Hankin, LLP, has been selected for inclusion as a President’s Circle Member in the Top Attorneys of North ...

As set forth previously, my client’s mother was not married to my client’s natural father. My client’s mother did marry however; and her new husband, the step-parent of my client, adopted her (a ...

As I described in my prior post, my client’s natural father had died without a will (i.e. California Probate Code §88 ) and her half-sister from her father’s prior marriage had petitioned to be ...

As I mentioned in my last post, my client was the daughter of a man who had recently died She had a half-sister, who was the child of her father and another woman. The difference was that the dead ...

Previously I told how the court determined that the single family residence owned by my client and her brother would be sold, as it could not be divided, all in accordance with California Code of ...

Probate is the court supervision of the distribution of assets of a deceased person after payment of taxes and creditors. Probate can be in accordance with a will, whereby the deceased person leaves ...

“One cannot serve two masters. A broker, even through two agents, should not represent both buyer and seller.” First licensed as a real estate sales person in 1978, a real estate broker in 1984, and ...

In my last post, the person who I had accused of Undue Influence ( California Civil Code §1575 ), had taken the witness stand during the trial of the case. Recall that I had alleged that my client’s ...

I have been describing in my prior two posts how it was that my client’s complaint, alleging Undue Influence California Civil Code §1575 (and, if brought today, Elder Abuse), came to trial in the ...

As I described in my prior post, my client’s cousin, an elderly gentleman, appeared to have been taken in by his caregiver and was demanding that my client give up the checkbook and account that she ...

I had, as described in the prior post, all of the ammunition that I needed to go to hearing in the Superior Court of Los Angeles County , Central Judicial District. However, hearings can be costly, ...

In my Orange County, California estate planning practice, I am constantly amazed at the greed shown by family members towards each other. Although I have been in practicing thirty years now with ...

Dynasty Trusts ensure that wealth gets passed down to successive generations. In fact, the special tax provisions in this wealth-building vehicle can allow you to amass a fortune relatively quickly. ...

A frequent question that comes up when doing estate planning in my Newport Beach, California office is why should one pay for a trust, when a will is so much cheaper. My response is are you thinking ...

Virtually every decision regarding probate is based on title to or value of assets owned by the decedent. Title is important because ownership can transfer as a matter of law (e.g. joint tenancy with ...

As I described in my prior post, my client’s cousin, an elderly gentleman, appeared to have been taken in by his caregiver and was demanding that my client give up the checkbook and account that she ...

Before I moved my office to Newport Beach, California, I was a partner in a law firm in Santa Ana, California. While there I tried a case that was decided in accordance with the statutes concerning ...

In my last post, the person who I had accused of Undue Influence ( California Civil Code §1575 ), had taken the witness stand during the trial of the case. Recall that I had alleged that my client’s ...

I have been describing in my prior two posts how it was that my client’s complaint, alleging Undue Influence California Civil Code §1575 (and, if brought today, Elder Abuse), came to trial in the ...

As I have said previously, greed is an incredible motivating factor in creating family discord; in this Orange County case, my client’s mother disinherited him in her will ( California Probate Code ...

In California, over the years, I have handled many cases involving disputes between family members over the estates of a deceased relative. Brothers against sisters, sisters against brothers, uncles ...

A frequent question that comes up when doing estate planning in my Newport Beach, California office is why should one pay for a trust, when a will is so much cheaper. My response is are you thinking ...

Each year, TopVerdict™ strives to recognize law firms and attorneys who have achieved an outstanding result in personal injury and wrongful death cases in their state each year. These top verdicts are ...