Greetings!

Welcome to the latest edition of Reminger’s monthly newsletter, In Brief: Ohio Estate and Trust Litigation Updates, focused on estates, trusts, and guardianships and the disputes surrounding them.
To be upheld as valid, evidence must establish that a deed was signed by the grantor or at the grantor’s direction.

To be valid, a deed must be signed by the grantor. However, the signature of the grantor need not be in the grantor’s own handwriting. While the statutory signature requirement may be satisfied by another affixing the grantor’s signature on the deed, the evidence must show that the grantor comprehended the deed, wanted its execution, and authorized the other to sign it. 

In Byars v. Byars, the administrator of Decedent’s Estate filed a declaratory judgment action to invalidate a quitclaim deed transferring Decedent’s property to her son. It was undisputed that the signature on the deed was not Decedent’s. Thus, the issue on appeal was whether the Decedent comprehended the deed, wanted its execution, and authorized another to sign it. The Second District found there was evidence from the notary that Decedent did not appear weak or to be under the influence of force or deceit. The notary also testified as to her belief that Decedent understood the deed’s nature and consequences. However, there was no evidence that Decedent authorized someone else to sign the deed for her, because the deed was already signed when the notary arrived. Accordingly, the Second District found that the deed was invalid because it was not signed by the grantor or at the grantor’s direction. 

Attorneys at Reminger have experience handling disputes and litigation arising from changes to estate plans, beneficiary designations, and transfers of property by a decedent. If you have reason to suspect wrongdoing in the transfer of assets prior to a loved one’s death, we encourage you to get in touch with our Estate, Trust, and Probate Litigation team so that we can further investigate. 
Meet Reminger's New Probate Litigation Attorneys
Welcome Nicholas Sebastiano!

We are pleased to announce the addition of Nicholas Sebastiano to our Estate and Probate Litigation Team. Nick joins us as a shareholder, practicing in our Cleveland and Youngstown offices. His practice focuses on litigating trust, estate, and other probate cases, as well as disputes regarding non-probate transfers.
Welcome Taylor Smoske!

We are pleased to announce the addition of Taylor Smoske to our Cleveland office. Taylor joins us as an associate attorney and focuses her practice on estate, trust, and probate litigation, and trust and estate administration.
Ohio Probate News & Insights
Be Careful What You Gift For

A rising trend is for individuals to make lifetime gifts of assets rather than to make gifts at death through a will, trust, or beneficiary designations.

Read our latest blog post for a cautionary story of a family who parceled out lots of lakefront land as a lifetime gift to their children.
Consult Attorney When Considering a Financial Gift

Thinking about making a year-end financial gift? Barbara Janovitz, Chair of our Estate Planning Group, reviews the benefits of making your gift before December 31st, and commonly made gifting mistakes.
Reminger Named a Tier 1 Firm for Trusts & Estates by U.S. News – Best Lawyers® “Best Law Firms” in 2022

"We are pleased to have been recognized by both U.S. News and World Report and Best Lawyers for our trusts and estates-related practice areas," noted Practice Group Co-Chair Franklin Malemud. 
Ohio Probate Law Updates

Each week, our seasoned team of Estate and Trust litigators summarize the latest Ohio Estate and Trust Dispute Rulings.
Our Team
Adam Fried
Practice Group Co-Chair
afried@reminger.com
216.430.2193
Cleveland
Franklin Malemud
Practice Group Co-Chair
fmalemud@reminger.com
216.430.2225
Cleveland
Lacey Ferrara
lferrara@reminger.com
216.430.2311
Cleveland
Jessica Forrest
jforrest@reminger.com
216.430.2204
Cleveland / Akron
Timothy Gallagher
tgallagher@reminger.com
216.430.2162
Cleveland
Patrick Kasson
pkasson@reminger.com
614.232.2418
Columbus
Mary Kraft
mkraft@reminger.com
614.232.2414
Columbus
Adriann McGee
amcgee@reminger.com
614.232.2442
Columbus
Russell Meraglio, Jr.
rmeraglio@reminger.com
216.430.2157
Cleveland
P. Nicholas Sebastiano
nsebastiano@reminger.com
216.430.2126
Cleveland / Youngstown
Paul Shugar
pshugar@reminger.com
216.430.2262
Cleveland
Taylor Smoske
tsmoske@reminger.com
216.430.2130
Cleveland
Joseph Simms
jsimms@reminger.com
216.430.2265
Cleveland
Leon Weiss
lweiss@reminger.com
216.430.2154
Cleveland
Estate and Trust Dispute Center of Ohio

Learn more about the complex arena of probate, trust, and estate litigation by reading our blog posts, legal insights, law updates, representative cases, resources, and more.

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