by hoodlawkc | Estate Planning
With the landmark ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court this summer allowing for same-sex marriage, a large contingent of Americans will have dramatic changes to their legal rights beyond the choice to marry whom they choose. Obergefell v. Hodges, (U.S. Supreme Court, Slip...
by hoodlawkc | Litigation
In 2005 the Missouri legislature and governor passed broad, sweeping laws under the guise of “tort reform.” One aspect of the new law greatly changed where litigants could file lawsuits. To simplify to a great detail: before the change, most tort lawsuits could be...
by hoodlawkc | Tax Planning, Tax Law
Community Property, a marital property regime primarily adopted in the western states as a result of Mexican and Spanish law influences, has been the cause of confusion and disputes in divorce and probate proceedings but also may present a substantial tax advantage in...
by hoodlawkc | Business Law
Last month, the Missouri Court of Appeals for the Eastern District found that a corporation’s confession of a judgment when it was broke and could not and would not pay was enough of a fraud to contribute to veil piercing, despite a long line of cases indicating that...
by hoodlawkc | Will, Estate Planning
Just as over-reliance on incompetent attorneys can have a negative impact on estate taxes for failure to file, misguided reliance in the drafting or execution of a will expressing intent of the testator may have unintended consequences as well. Wills have long been...
by hoodlawkc | Estate Planning, Tax Planning
Earlier this year, a federal court rendered an opinion in Janice C. Specht et al. v. U.S., No. 1:13-cv00705 (U.S. District Court, S.D. Ohio, Western Division, 2015), that should be a strong warning to those persons tasked with being executors of estates, and in...
