Asserted the rights of a client whose ex-husband died prior to transferring assets awarded to her in their divorce. On the eve of the trial, our San Jose litigation attorneys secured a settlement valued at more than $700,000 for our client.
Trust
Contests
Successfully defended the integrity of a handwritten will that had been challenged as ambiguous. After trial, our litigation attorneys obtained a determination from the Sixth District Court of Appeal that our client is the sole beneficiary of an estate valued at approximately $20 million. https://casetext.com/case/estate-of-hinz-v-barclay
Will
Contests
Suspended a trustee who lent himself $400,000 of a beneficiary’s assets held in trust.
Trustee
Theft
We settled on the second day of trial a dispute regarding a trustee’s accounting and secured the trustee’s liability to our clients as trust beneficiaries.
Represented an estate administrator in defending the decedent’s will against allegations of forgery. The settlement upheld the validity of the will and a gift of more than $2 million to the Gates Foundation.
Negotiated the return of annuities valued at $400,000 to a 90-year-old client who had been taken advantage of by an annuity salesman.
Financial Elder
Abuse
Obtained an appellate court order upholding a lower court’s trust interpretation that was favorable to our client, a co-trustee acting with two of his brothers in the management of a trust that owned multiple commercial properties and was valued in excess of $30 million.
Trust
Administration
Our business succession planning attorneys negotiated a client’s early termination of their commercial lease, which saved the company approximately $100,000.
Business
Succession
Planning
Represented a client whose wife passed away during divorce. We were able to negotiate the return of assets, including the client’s share of a home valued in excess of $4 million, taken by the wife.
Beneficiary
Representation
Successfully admitted to probate a will that had been shredded after the decedent’s death. We then negotiated the settlement of a contest to the will whereby our client and his siblings inherited the estate valued in excess of $5 million.
Will
Contests
Obtained a judgment for a trust beneficiary against the trustee who breached his duty of loyalty to the beneficiary. The judgment was in excess of $130,000 and included an award of attorney fees.
Our financial elder abuse attorneys obtained a court order for a client nullifying power of attorney that was obtained through improper means and reinstated our client’s power of attorney for her mother.
Financial Elder
Abuse
We successfully guided a trustee through administration of a $17 million charitable trust estate.
Trust
Administration
Ferguson Law Group’s business succession planning attorneys advised California ranchers and farmers on managing their extensive real property portfolios, including farmland, ranches, and agricultural assets. We assisted in developing comprehensive succession plans to ensure a smooth transition of land and operations to future generations, addressing estate planning, tax strategies, and the preservation of family-owned land for continued agricultural use.
Business
Succession
Planning
Without filing any legal pleadings, our attorneys negotiated a settlement worth more than $1,000,000 to our clients as beneficiaries of their mother’s IRA account.
Beneficiary
Representation
Through mediation, we negotiated the settlement of a will contest allowing our client to receive her entire intestate share of her father’s estate without filing any legal pleadings or having to appear in court.
Will
Contests
We represented a trust beneficiary whose brother failed to account for and distribute trust assets. Litigation attorneys from Ferguson Law Group successfully suspended the trustee via court order and then negotiated a settlement whereby the trustee returned funds stolen from the trust.
Financial Elder
Abuse
Trust
Administration
Trust
Administration
Our trust administrations attorneys represented a corporate fiduciary in the charitable disposition of a multi-million dollar estate.
Trust
Administration
Represented a trustee in administering her mother’s trust estate, from the diagnosis of dementia through the settlor’s passing, and facilitated the distribution of the eight-figure estate among three siblings within five months of their mother’s death.
Trust
Administration
Successfully assisted an estate planning client in administering his trust following the death of his wife of over 60 years, including facilitating significant loans from the trust to one child. After the surviving spouse’s passing, the trustors’ daughters smoothly transitioned into the role of successor trustees, liquidated the trust’s real property and investments, and distributed the estate in a timely manner—taking into account a promissory note owed by one beneficiary.
Trust
Administration
We represented a trustee in efficiently carrying out his duties by securing his appointment as the administrator of a deceased sibling’s estate. This facilitated the distribution of the trust estate to the numerous beneficiaries and allowed the deceased beneficiary’s share of the trust to be included in the intestate probate estate for further distribution in accordance with California’s laws of intestacy.
Trust
Administration
Our attorneys successfully defended our client, the trustee, against attempts by his sibling to remove him as trustee of his parent’s bypass trust. We subsequently guided him in collaborating with the professional fiduciary appointed as trustee of the survivor trust, facilitated the sale of commercial and residential properties, and completed the full distribution of trust assets while avoiding further litigation.
Trust
Administration
Our trust administration attorneys negotiated the resignation of a trustee on behalf of the sole beneficiary of his mother’s trust to avoid cost duplication and to limit trust expenses.
Trust
Administration
We assisted an out-of-state trustee in managing the sale of her parents’ home and the distribution of their estate during a challenging period.
Trust
Administration
Our team advised a trustee on guardianship matters and the long-term administration of separate share trusts established for minor children, ensuring the parents’ wishes for the children’s education and well-being were fulfilled after their passing.
Trust
Administration
We represented the successor trustee of a testamentary trust established for the benefit of an out-of-state person.
Trust
Administration
Ferguson Law Group represented a trustee who we successfully had appointed as administrator of a probate estate to pursue a personal injury settlement on behalf of the decedent and for the benefit of her children.
Trust
Administration
Our trust administration attorneys represented multiple fiduciaries of trust estates where the decedent was a plaintiff in active litigation at the time of death, pursuing claims to secure settlements on behalf of the estate and its heirs and beneficiaries. The pending cases included personal injury, workers’ compensation, and mass tort litigation.
Trust
Administration
We assisted the surviving spouse with the administration of both trust and probate estates after the unexpected death of their spouse amid ongoing marriage dissolution proceedings.
Trust
Administration
Our team supported a decedent’s child through the delayed probate of a parent’s estate and the administration of a grandparent’s, both of which had been inactive for some time. Ferguson Law Grop successfully removed the administrator of the mother’s estate due to prolonged inaction, facilitated the sale of real properties, addressed estate debts, and distributed funds to each beneficiary sufficient to support their housing needs.
Trust
Administration
We assisted surviving spouses and beneficiaries in modifying the terms of irrevocable trusts to take advantage of increased estate tax exemption values, ensuring a double step-up in basis on real property after the second spouse’s death.
Trust
Administration
Ferguson Law Group assisted a trustee in securing an unsecured loan to provide sufficient liquidity for the non-pro-rata distribution of trust assets. This approach allowed one sibling to retain the family real property while distributing cash to the other siblings, all while preserving the Proposition 19 parent-child exclusion from California property tax reassessment.
Trust
Administration
We obtained a court order to clear the title on a trust-owned property jointly held by a decedent and her parents and siblings, where multiple testamentary trust bequests and conveyances had created obstacles to selling the property. After clearing the title, the property was successfully sold and proceeds were distributed to the trust beneficiaries.
Trust
Administration
Our trust administration attorneys provided representation to trustees of multiple interconnected trusts that owned several business entities managing commercial and residential real estate nationwide.
Trust
Administration
We assisted a trustee in the comprehensive administration of a complex trust, including coordinating tax filings, property management, asset liquidation, and beneficiary distributions. The trust included over a dozen real properties, various investment accounts, and multiple beneficiaries with diverse interests. Our team provided guidance on compliance with legal and tax obligations, strategic liquidation of assets to maximize value, and efficient distribution planning to balance the needs and expectations of all beneficiaries.
Trust
Administration
The team assisted a client in successfully securing a quiet title action on a commercial property that had been in her family for generations, allowing for a clear title essential to the property’s sale. We guided the client through complex legal proceedings to resolve competing claims and establish uncontested ownership, ultimately enabling the sale of the property. The successful resolution allowed for the distribution of sale proceeds among family members, preserving the value of the asset and honoring the family’s legacy while maximizing financial benefit for all beneficiaries.
Trust
Administration
Our team advised California professionals, including doctors, dentists, optometrists, veterinarians, chiropractors, CPAs, and other practice owners, in managing and optimizing their professional practice assets. We provided guidance on succession planning to facilitate seamless transitions, whether for retirement, sale, or partnership changes. This work includes strategic planning for practice valuation, tax efficiency, estate considerations, and ensuring continuity of care or services for clients and patients. We develop tailored plans to address each client’s unique needs and goals, safeguarding the longevity and legacy of their professional achievements.
Business
Succession
Planning
Our beneficiary representation attorneys represented a husband sued for allegedly stealing millions of dollars while he was acting as conservator of his wife’s estate. We negotiated a favorable settlement that allowed for the termination of the conservatorship, the dismissal of all proposed penalties, and, most importantly, the family remained intact.
Beneficiary
Representation
Defended a trustee against claims brought by his step-brother for allegedly making improper loans to the client’s business with trust funds. Our San Jose litigation attorneys negotiated a favorable settlement allowing the settlement proceeds to be repaid to the trust over time without damaging the client’s business.
Our beneficiary representation attorneys suspended a trustee and forced the sale of a condominium through a court order. The condominium was a trust asset and the trustee refused to vacate or pay rent for four years up to that point. We obtained a settlement that provided our client with damages for past due rent and permitted her to sell the condominium as a temporary trustee.
Beneficiary
Representation
