Program Details
2026-08-27 13:00:00
Over 1,000+ webinars
Course Overview
2026-08-27 13:00:00
2h CLE Credits
Intermediate
2
1:00 pm - 2:00 pm ESTThis session equips beneficiary-side and trust litigation attorneys with the statutory framework, procedural toolkit, and remedies available when a trustee refuses to disclose, account, or communicate. Attendees will examine UTC § 813 and state-by-state variations—including the silent trust regimes of South Dakota, Delaware, Nevada, and Michigan’s 2024 statute—and learn how to distinguish a legally authorized silent trust from a stonewalling trustee in breach. Attorneys leave with a step-by-step roadmap for compelling accountings, navigating standing thresholds, defeating privilege assertions, and pursuing escalating remedies through surcharge, removal, and fee-shifting.
David Fowler Johnson 2:10 pm - 3:10 pm ESTThis session equips trustee-defense counsel with the practical tools to navigate the three most consequential risks in trust litigation: attorney-client privilege erosion under the fiduciary exception, file-management failures that become evidence of unfitness, and the strategic use of nonjudicial settlement agreements and in terrorem clauses to resolve disputes. Attorneys will leave with a framework for segregating privileged communications from the outset, auditing exculpation clauses at engagement, and structuring releases that survive virtual-representation and tax challenges. The session pays particular attention to the silent trust overlay — where the same statutory provisions that limit beneficiary access also limit trustee defenses.
John ScheererDavid Fowler Johnson is widely regarded as a go-to fiduciary litigator in Texas, practicing from Winstead PC’s Fort Worth office. His practice concentrates on trust, estate, and closely held business disputes, and he writes and speaks frequently across the state on fiduciary law. He authors The Fiduciary Litigator, an award-winning blog tracking case law, legislative changes, and other developments affecting Texas fiduciaries.
John Scheerer is a partner at Sacks, Glazier, Franklin, Lodise, McMurtrey & Scheerer, LLP in Los Angeles, where he focuses his practice exclusively on trusts, estates, and conservatorship litigation. He has handled a broad range of matters before the Probate Department of the Superior Court and has argued appeals in the California Court of Appeal, producing multiple successful appellate decisions. He represents beneficiaries, trustees, professional fiduciaries, and non-profit institutions, including national universities.
David Fowler Johnson is widely regarded as a go-to fiduciary litigator in Texas, practicing from Winstead PC’s Fort Worth office. His practice concentrates on trust, estate, and closely held business disputes, and he writes and speaks frequently across the state on fiduciary law. He authors The Fiduciary Litigator, an award-winning blog tracking case law, legislative changes, and other developments affecting Texas fiduciaries.
John Scheerer is a partner at Sacks, Glazier, Franklin, Lodise, McMurtrey & Scheerer, LLP in Los Angeles, where he focuses his practice exclusively on trusts, estates, and conservatorship litigation. He has handled a broad range of matters before the Probate Department of the Superior Court and has argued appeals in the California Court of Appeal, producing multiple successful appellate decisions. He represents beneficiaries, trustees, professional fiduciaries, and non-profit institutions, including national universities.
Requirements
The Alabama State Bar MCLE Commission requires attorneys to complete 12 credits, including 1 ethics, by December 31 of each year. All credits must be reported by February 15 of the following year. A maximum of 12 credits, including 1 ethics credit, may be carried over for 1 year only.
Formats
