For more than a decade, employees of a violent Mexican Cartel, posing as sales representatives, have contacted timeshare owners and offered to buy their timeshares back for a princely sum. They persuade the owners to wire large sums to Mexico for upfront fees for listing advertisements, government fines, and other bogus costs.  Then, of course, they clean out the victims’ bank accounts. How Does The Timeshare Scam Work? The scheme is enormous. The cartel has dozens of call centers and has netted hundreds of millions of dollars. Its target is older, retired American and Canadian owners wh ..read more

The four kids had been locked in litigation over their parents’ estate for years. Hundreds of thousands of dollars had been paid for lawyers, handwriting experts, discovery, appraisals, and forensic accountants. Each penny spent only solidified the family’s mutual enmity. With the final trial date looming, the parties were frantically preparing exhibits and litigation briefs when their lawyers received an email from the court coordinator. Had they, the coordinator politely inquired, gone to mediation yet? If not, the judge was going to postpone the trial until they had done so.  Types of ..read more

On May 19, 1860, Hamilton Washington, a man of many prejudices and superstitions, executed a will that left his entire estate to his sister, Mary Beazley.  On June 6, 1868, Hamilton executed a new will that left “pretty much all of his estate” to Wm. B. Denson, who “was no relative of the testator [Hamilton].” Then Hamilton died, leaving such a mess that it went up to the Texas Supreme Court, which issued an 1870 opinion that is still cited today.  Why all the hoopla? Because the Denson opinion contains a fascinating discussion on insane delusions and the capacity to execute a will ..read more

Parents and caregivers of pre-teens often dread when the time arrives to have “The Talk.” Body hair, sex, new and unpleasant smells, love interest; yes, THAT talk. Everyone who is actively involved in this talk is uncomfortable and trying to get through the awkwardness as quickly as possible, while still giving and receiving information.  In preparing for this milestone conversation, parents employ a variety of resources to open a healthy and productive conversation. What do they wish they were told, could the timing or approach be different, what went well, and what could be better? Wha ..read more

This is written by an attorney who handles estate planning and represents clients in guardianship, will contests, and trust and fiduciary litigation. In my world, I see a lot of children who come up short when a parent ages. The children fight over money, argue over control, neglect their parents, steal, and exploit. Tips for Preparing Your Child to Be an Adult Guardian The children’s bad behavior does not mean that their parents did not raise them right. I worry, however, that some of the parenting advice that is going around now is going to promote a crop of entitled, selfish adult brats. H ..read more

Let’s assume your mom, who lived in Texas, died and left a written will naming you as her independent executor. What can you expect once the court has appointed you the independent executor of her estate?  Becoming an Independent Executor  1. Formally Qualifying You formally qualify to serve as independent executor of the estate by filing your written oath of office. This is normally done at the court hearing. Because you are an “independent” executor, you may act independently of the Probate Court’s control, except that you must file a required Inventory and List of Claims or file ..read more

Home Health Care, Palliative Care, and Hospice Care sound similar, but these three levels of care are unique in their approach to recovery and comfort.  A broken hip, kidney failure, cancer, or dementia, even the toughest among us need help. Life happens to us all, regardless of who we are, how much we make, or how many vegetables we eat. Who do we call when we need help?  We are going to discuss these three service options and decipher which is right during our time of need.   What Is Home Health Care? The objective of home health services is to treat illness or injuries ..read more

My doctor has suggested that I write a column about falls. He seems to think falls are bad for people. I tend to agree. This column is about avoiding falls and the legal implications if you fall anyway.   The thing to remember about falling is that if it doesn’t kill you, it will seriously inconvenience you and everyone around you. Falling when you are old and have fragile bones is, bluntly, bad for you. That is a shame because older folks are prone to falls.  Why Are Older People More Prone to Falling? They have medical conditions like Parkinson’s, dementia, concussions, vitam ..read more

I was sitting at the courthouse waiting for my client’s case to be called when my cell phone rang. The caller announced that he was an officer from a governmental agency. I had no current interactions with that agency. I hung up before he could ask me other questions, such as my social security number or a link to my bank account. The day before that I had received an email from an attorney’s email address. It contained a link to download discovery documents. I did not know the attorney and had not asked for discovery documents from her or her law firm. I did not open the attachment, and imme ..read more

Older workers often find themselves unceremoniously dumped from their full-time jobs years before they are ready to retire. What is their next step? Hawking their services as an independent contractor, of course. But is the worker really an independent contractor and not an employee? Only your friendly government knows for sure, and it changes its mind quite often. On January 10, 2024, the Department of Labor’s final rule on worker classification under the Fair Labor Standards Act, was released. It is effective March 11, 2024.     How to Classify a Worker The Department ha ..read more