Navigating a postdeath trust administration can be daunting, and attorneys must have the necessary skills, knowledge, and competence to diligently and effectively provide legal services to fiduciary clients during this process.

A Last Will and Testament devises one’s property after their passing. Great weight is given to this document; Wills have formalities that other documents don’t, hinting to its importance. But what happens when a devise in a Will contradicts a formerly executed contract?

This issue was litigated recently in Ohio. In this case, Twila entered into a partnership agreement in 1986 with her husband and another couple. The partnership agreement contained a provision that stated: “To protect and preserve the family character of this Partnership, each of the undersigned partners agree to have prepared and to execute a last will and testament so as to ensure that his or her interest in this Partnership will, upon his or her death, pass to and vest in his or her surviving spouse. Each partner, who shall ultimately become a surviving spouse, further agrees to have prepared and execute a last will and testament so as to vest his or her interest in this Partnership in his or her children (lineal descendants). Should any partner neglect or fail to execute such last will and testament, so as to ultimately cause his or her partnership interest to pass to and vest in an individual, who is not a spouse or lineal descendant of these partners, then upon such event, the Partnership shall be liquidated and dissolved forthwith.”

From the proposed elimination of stepped-up basis to new grants for restaurants and live venues harmed by the COVID-19 pandemic, we have recently seen significant developments in estate planning and business law. To ensure that you stay abreast of these legal changes, we have highlighted a few noteworthy developments and analyzed how they may impact your estate planning and business law practice.