A high-profile will contest hammers home the need for proper estate planning.

Frank Fritz, star of the History Channel show “American Pickers,” suffered a stroke, became incapacitated, and died on September 30, 2024, at age 60. Before he passed away, his friend, Chris Davis, became his legal guardian. Fritz’ will was submitted for probate on

What Happens:

Kate Holbrook discovers that her chances of becoming pregnant are drastically reduced. Kate considers adoption, but a misguided social worker convinces her that her chances of being approved as an adoptive parent are limited because she is not married.

Kate learns of the Chaffee Bicknell surrogacy center and is connected with Angie Ostrowski,

What Happened

Come on, you know what happened, right?

For those denied the joy of Roald Dahl and his take on bad parents, here is an overview.

Willy Wonka, the owner of Wonka’s Chocolates, is a unique and secretive chocolatier. Wonka’s Chocolates has one factory. Unlike other factories, no workers or visitors are seen entering

By Jennifer Hillman and Jill Choate Beier

For years trust and estate practitioners have shared their concerns that New York’s high taxes are pushing wealthier residents to move out of state. In fact, an analysis released this year by New York City’s Independent Budget Office showed an 11% decline in the number of city taxpayers

What Happened:

The Grinch lives alone in a mountaintop cave with his dog, Max, and no medical attention for his undersized heart and oversized unpleasantness. The Grinch observes the noisy holiday festivities of Whoville from afar. The happy racket fuels his anger and furthers his feelings of isolation. In a misguided attempt to salve his

What Happened:

Margaret Schlegel and Ruth Wilcox bond over Christmas shopping, their shared attachment to their respective childhood homes and familial loyalty. Ruth enchants Margaret with stories of her ancestral home, Howards End. Ruth confides in Margaret that her husband, Henry, and children do not share her connection or affection for Howards End. They are

What Happened:

The entire Royal Family of the United Kingdom dies during a poorly planned family photo session (but as anyone who has sat through a family photo knows, they may have faked it).

Meanwhile, on the other side of the pond (we tend to be cheeky), Ralph Jones works as a Las Vegas lounge

What Happened:

Drew Baylor is a wildly successful athletic shoe designer for Mercury Sportwear until his world is turned askew when one of the shoes he designed is accused of having a design flaw.  Mercury announces a recall; Drew becomes the scapegoat; his boss publicly humiliates him and then unceremoniously fires Drew.

At his darkest

What happened:

Fester Addams, a wealthy bachelor, wants nothing more than to find a great love like that between his older brother Gomez and his wife Morticia, but he is too trusting and easily mislead. Following the birth of Gomez and Morticia’s third child, Pubert, they hire a nanny named Debbie. Fester quickly becomes

What Happened:

Margot and Tony Wendice seem to have it all – they are young, beautiful, and in love.  However, much like pyrite, not everything that glitters is gold.

Before their marriage, Tony was a successful tennis player.  It would have been unseemly for Margot, a wealthy socialite, to marry a professional athlete, so Tony

What Happens?

In a twisted psychological experiment, Allison and Peter Novak set up their friends Holly Berenson and Eric Messer (a/k/a Messer) on a date.  Holly and Messer are as incompatible as pineapple and New York pizza, and the matchmaking experiment predictably tanks.  The Novaks cannot leave well-enough alone, they double down and pull an

What Happened:

Henry Hobson is a widowed blowhard who fancies himself superior to everyone because he owns a shoe business.  Hobson’s daughter Maggie actually runs the business, but Hobson does not pay her.

Hobson is downright nasty to most of the people in his life.  He demeans Maggie and tells her she is too old

Jennifer Hillman’s and Joseph La Ferlita’s article, “SSHHH! Should Trustees Speak Up About Quiet Trusts?” was published in the New York State Bar Association Trusts and Estates Law Section Journal.

Although some may question whether financial modesty is a virtue, there is no requirement that parents disclose their net worth to their children. However, the

What Happened:

Montgomery Brewster’s minor league baseball career is fizzling.  Optimistic Brewster believes his big break is just around the corner, but the break he gets is not the one he expects.

Brewster’s previously unknown great-uncle Rupert Horn dies leaving Brewster $300 million – but only if Brewster can spend $30 million in 30 days

What Happened:

Uptown Girls begins as all fairy tales should:

“There was once a princess who lived in a castle high above the streets of an enchanted kingdom (New York). The king and queen were long gone but they left her with their treasure so that she could stay a princess forever…”

Some people thought

What happened

Sanford Babbitt, Charlie Babbitt’s estranged father, died. Charlie returns home and finds out he is only receiving a car and prize-winning roses, and that all of his father’s other assets have been left in trust for the benefit of an unnamed individual.

Eventually Charlie finds out he has an older brother named Raymond

While some clients flaunt their wealth, others like to keep things quiet. Sometimes, such “financial modesty” is motivated by a concern that knowledge of family wealth could result in disincentivized children or grandchildren. Although some may question whether such financial modesty is a virtue, there is no requirement that parents disclose their net worth to

What happened

“Legendary was the Xanadu where Kubla Kahn decreed his stately pleasure dome.” Legendary too were the colossal errors made by Mary Kane in this celebrated classic movie which follows a journalist as he tries to uncover the meaning of Charles Foster Kane’s last words.

Jim Kane and Mary Kane ran a Colorado