Inheritance Law Litigation on the rise

The Trust Litigation and inheritance dispute of Anna Nicole Smith and other high profile cases have been in the news recently. However the past few years have shown a noticeable increase in Inheritance Litigation matters. My Firm has had an increase in calls of clients seeking to contest a Florida will and receive a larger share of the Florida Inheritance by hiring an Estate Litigation Lawyer to insure they receive everything they are legally entitled to.

As litigation over inherited wealth becomes more common, law firms are strengthening their trust and estate litigation services to meet the demand. The South Florida Business Journal reporting a story from the St Paul Business reports.

"We realized many of our lawyers in our trust-and-estate practice were spending a significant amount of time consulting with litigators to help them understand how trusts work," said Jane Godfrey, a co-chair with Leonard, Street and Deinard's new Trust and Estates Litigation practice. "So we thought a combined practice made sense."

The massive transfer in wealth alone is enough to spur more family feuds, Godfrey said. According to an article in the dispute resolution journal $41 Billion between 1998 and 2052. There are many reasons for the increase in inheritance disputes though.

Larger number of subsequent marriages and more children in each family make disputes more likely.

Well-publicized trials also contribute to the rise in demand for estate litigation attorneys.

In the James Binger case, the family disputed the former Honeywell chairman's decision to amend his will two months before he died in November 2004 to give about $40 million to $50 million of his $200 million estate to Jane K. Mauer after his death. Mauer was his family's wealth manager with whom he also had a close personal relationship. The family objected to that gift, arguing that Mauer manipulated Binger into giving it to her. Mauer says that's not true. Dorsey & Whitney attorney Greg Weyandt, a member of the firm's trust-and-estate litigation practice, represented the Binger family.

"I've gotten calls from people who said they read about some other case in the newspaper and it made them think they may have a claim," said Alan Silver, a litigator with Minneapolis-based law firm.