Probate and Trust Litigation

When you consider the intricate nature of many personal estate plans alongside the fact that occasionally they are drafted by well-intentioned but nonetheless inexperienced laypersons, it is not surprising that estate administration does not always go as one might wish. Spouses are asked to defend the validity of wills over which they have control. Trustees are deemed less trustworthy than their titles would imply. Estate plan language that initially seemed incontrovertible turns out, upon closer inspection, to be incomprehensible. Assets are suddenly impossible to trace.

What is Probate?

Probate is a certificate issued by the court that verifies if the will of a deceased is legally valid and whether the executors appointed under the will are authorized to administer his or her estate. This court-administered process can be time-consuming, costly, and is necessarily a matter of public record.

What is Trust Litigation?

A Trust Litigation is essentially a trust designed for the benefit of creditors of a debtor in order to prosecute and distribute the proceeds belonging to the debtor that are transferred to the litigation trust as part of the bankruptcy plan.

If you are based in the San Francisco Peninsula, (San Mateo, Palo Alto, Redwood City, Foster City, Burlingame, Mountain View…), South Bay (San Jose, Sunnyvale, Santa Clara…), Alameda County (Oakland, Alameda, Berkeley, Pleasanton…) and San Francisco, and find yourself in situations such as these, McDowall Cotter’s litigation team offers not only expertise and compassion but also perspective drawn from close association with our own Estate Planning & Wealth Preservation attorneys. Our team of lawyers at our San Mateo law firm have decades of experience handling breach of trust actions, will contests, and other probate litigation with just the right mix of empathy and advocacy.

Have questions or need consultation? Contact us here.