Mediation of Trust & Estate Disputes – 2019 – The Missouribar

Originally presented on: November 1, 2019
 

Trust and estate disputes among family members – children against parents, siblings against siblings, generation against generation – can be among the most bitter, protracted and costly, because they involve not only money but emotion. Litigation can be ruinous because client decision-making may be made as much on basis of spite as reason, leading to very lengthy litigation that may rapidly deplete the assets that are the basis of the litigation. Mediation is a possible solution to expediate dispute resolution and preserve assets, but it comes with its own tradeoffs and challenges. This program will provide you a practical guide to mediation in trust and estate disputes. 

• Crafting effective mediation strategies in trust and estate disputes
• Types of disputes more v. less amendable to mediated resolution
• Family business, spousal, discretionary distribution, undue influence & other disputes
• Crafting a mediation strategy depending on the nature of the underlying dispute
• Confidentiality and other issues to be wary of if mediation fails & litigation ensues
• Counseling clients about setting reasonable expectations for mediation

Speaker: Steven B. Malech, Wiggin and Dana, LLP, New York, NY

NOTE: This program was originally produced as a telephone seminar and is available on demand in streaming audio. This material qualifies for self-study credit only. Pursuant to Regulation 15.04.5, a lawyer may receive up to six hours of self-study credit in a reporting year. Self-study programs do not qualify for ethics or elimination of bias credit.