As folks age, they oftentimes become unable to manage their affairs. A court can name someone to handle these affairs on the senior’s behalf. A guardian is appointed to make personal or healthcare decisions; a conservator is appointed to make financial decisions. The senior is termed the “ward.” That guardian and conservator (oftentimes the same individual) are then responsible to handle the ward’s affairs, in the ward’s best interests. But how far can the conservator go? Can a conservator sue the ward’s spouse for support and maintenance? This issue was recently litigated in South Carolina.

An arbitration agreement is a contract that states that the signors cannot sue each other in court. Rather, the remedy for any perceived wrongdoing on the part of the signors is arbitration. Arbitration is similar to mediation except that the former is binding upon the parties. Businesses oftentimes prefer arbitration to a court process as a way to keep litigation costs down and to keep the dispute confidential.

A court might not honor an arbitration agreement and allow a suit to proceed if there was fraud or if the agreement is unconscionable. An unconscionable agreement would be one that was unreasonably unfair, unjust, or oppressive to a signor.

In a case out of Pennsylvania, a court did find that an arbitration agreement was unconscionable.

From the Internal Revenue Service’s Dirty Dozen tax schemes to the standard applicable to waiver in federal arbitration cases, 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 some noteworthy developments and analyzed how they may impact your estate planning and business law practice.