Ninth Circuit Won’t Rehear Steinbeck Family Copyright Spat
The Ninth Circuit will not revisit its decision in a long-running copyright feud between family and heirs of renowned author John Steinbeck.
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Stan Lee Saga
The late Stan Lee’s longtime business manager Bradley J. Herman claims that Lee’s daughter Joan Celia Lee, her attorney Kirk Schenck and The Daily Beast defamed him by claiming he took advantage of the comic legend in his final days, in L.A. Superior Court.
Read moreEx-Hendrix Bandmates Can’t Claw Back Sold Guitars
It wasn’t the first lawsuit over Jimi Hendrix’s old guitars, and it’s unlikely to be the last.
Read moreWills
A Florida appeals court affirmed that the late U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno’s home was properly transferred to Miami-Dade College, as the University of Miami opposed conditions on the will and trust, so the successor trustee transferred the home to a similar nonprofit that agreed to the conditions.
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Epstein Signed Will 2 Days Before Killing Himself
Jeffrey Epstein signed a will just two days before he killed himself in jail, court records show, opening a new legal front in what could be a long battle over the financier’s fortune.
Read moreW.C. Handy
A federal judge refused to dismiss claims that the estate of “St. Louis Blues” composer W.C. Handy defamed an accountant by accusing him of dipping into company assets.
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Judge Skeptical of Wrongful Death Claim for Aborted Embryo
An Alabama attorney claimed Wednesday that under state law, anyone can do what his client is hoping to achieve: Successfully sue an abortion provider for wrongful death after getting a letter of administration to represent the estate of an aborted embryo or fetus.
Read moreJudge OKs Wrongful-Death Suit on Behalf of Aborted Embryo
An Alabama judge’s ruling has given legal standing to an aborted embryo.
Read moreRedstone Estate Wrap
The three-year war over media mogul Sumner Redstone’s estate came to a quiet end Wednesday, after a California judge ruled the 95-year-old former Viacom exec had the mental capacity to amend his trust in 2015 and 2016 to exclude a former companion in favor of his daughter Shari Redstone.
Read moreHuman Rights Court Rules Against Greece in Sharia Law Case
Greece violated a prohibition on discrimination by applying Islamic religious law to an inheritance dispute among members of the country’s Muslim minority, the European Court of Human Rights ruled Wednesday.
Read moreLibertarians Fighting Payment-Plan Rules Stumble at DC Circuit
The en banc D.C. Circuit appeared likely at oral arguments Friday to endorse the installment plan forced upon the Libertarian Party after it was bequeathed a hefty donation.
Read moreWorkers’ Estates Can Collect on Unused Leave Time, EU Court Rules
Two German widows are entitled to allowances in lieu of paid annual leave that their husbands had accrued at work before their deaths, the European Court of Justice ruled Tuesday.
Read moreCopy of ‘Lady Chatterley’ Used at Obscenity Trial for Sale
A paperback copy of “Lady Chatterley’s Lover” used by the judge in the book’s landmark U.K. obscenity trial is expected to sell at auction for up to 15,000 pounds ($20,000).
Read moreJudge Appoints Trustee for Hawaiian Princess’s Millions
A Hawaii judge on Monday made First Hawaiian Bank the new trustee of the estate of Hawaiian princess and sugar cane heiress Abigail Kawananakoa, after finding the 92-year old lacks the mental capacity to oversee the $220 million trust.
Read moreMan Linked to Relatives’ Deaths Seeks Access to Trust Fund
A Vermont man accused by relatives of killing his millionaire grandfather and his mother to collect inheritance money asked a Connecticut probate judge Tuesday to allow him immediate access to $150,000 in a family trust so he can pay for legal expenses.
Read moreWidower Wins Court Battle for Estate of ‘Thorn Birds’ Author
An Australian judge ruled on Friday that best-selling author Colleen McCullough’s widower was the sole beneficiary of her estate following a bitter court wrangle.
Read moreWomen Fight Idaho’s ‘Pregnancy Exclusion’ for Living Wills
Four women on Thursday challenged the constitutionality of an Idaho law that invalidates an adult woman’s living will if she is pregnant.
Read moreMichael Jackson’s Estate Sues Over ABC Documentary
Michael Jackson’s estate sued ABC Inc. and the Walt Disney Company Wednesday, claiming it did not authorize the use of the late musician’s music videos and songs for a documentary that aired earlier this month.
Read moreWorkers’ Vacation Pay Can Be Inherited, EU Magistrate Says
A European Court of Justice magistrate on Tuesday urged his colleagues to overturn a German law that bars heirs from demanding their loved one’s unused vacation time in cash.
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