News About Law

By: Chancellor Troy Odom, 20th Chancery District, State of Mississippi Mississippi chancellors are often faced with custody determinations in which neither party has requested joint physical custody. This raises a critical question for chancery practitioners: may a chancellor award joint physical custody if it was not specifically requested in the pleadings? The Short Answer Yes.

By: Donald E. Campbell Michael E. Roberts died on December 19, 2016. Believing that he died intestate, Teresa Herd – the mother of Michael’s child – sought to open an estate appointing herself as administrator. Thereafter, Bryan Williams (Michael’s nephew), intervened claiming that a 2001 will (which named Bryan as a beneficiary and executor) was

By: Donald Campbell Happy New Year to all! I’m getting back into the groove here at the law school and an interesting topic has been circulating on a Property Professor list serve I follow: should the Rule Against Perpetuities still be taught in the first year Property law course? This same topic circulated on the

By: Donald E. Campbell In two recent cases the Mississippi Court of Appeals has addressed the award of attorney’s fees in estate matters. In the first case, Estate of Watson v. Watson, 2024 WL 4354006 (Miss. Ct. App. 2024) the court reversed the chancellor based on the award of attorney’s fees over other creditor claims

By: Donald Campbell There is a longstanding common law rule that a person who has been absent for an extended period of time can be presumed to be dead. See Thayer, A Preliminary Treatise on Evidence at the Common Law pp. 319-324 (1898). Mississippi has codified this common law rule since at least 1856, and

By: Donald Campbell Word v. U.S. Bank, 2024 WL 4489615 (Miss. Ct. App. 2024), is a case decided by the Mississippi Court of Appeals about an easement by necessity.  While the court ultimately reached the correct decision based on Mississippi law, the opinion included some analysis that needs to be clarified/corrected in future cases for

By: Professor Deborah H. Bell Three types of alimony (periodic, lump sum, and rehabilitative) are well-established  in Mississippi. A fourth type – reimbursement alimony – was recently recognized by the court of appeals for the first time since its adoption by the supreme court in 1999. The decision opens the door for broader application of

By: Chancellor Troy Odom (Rankin County Chancery Court) “The party who brings suit confers by that act all necessary personal jurisdiction as to himself.” Miss. Chancery Practice § 2.13 at 37 (2017 ed.). That’s axiomatic, right? In a circuit or federal court practice, a defendant who files a counterclaim does not serve a Rule 4

By: Donald Campbell William Howard, Jr. and John Carpenter Nelson, Jr. own property in Forrest County, Mississippi just north of Camp Shelby.  The area is wooded and undeveloped.  There is a “woods road” that runs from a paved road (Northgate Road) that traverses the land owned by Howard and Nelson, but the location of the road

By: Donald Campbell I am going to be traveling over the next couple of days. I really enjoy listening to podcasts while I am driving. So, I thought I would recommend a podcast that I came across on my last trip and ask for suggestions from you for good podcasts. The podcast that I would

Music legend Glen Campbell, who passed away last year after a lengthy and public bout with Alzheimer’s Disease, has been nominated posthumously for a Grammy award for his song, “Arkansas Farmboy.” But sadly he is in the news now for a very different reason: a family legal battle over his estate. A Nashville court hearing

How much should you expect to pay to have your will or other estate planning documents put in place? As you might expect, that will depend on the nature of your estate planning needs, and the nature of the law firm you retain. Because the fee can vary greatly among legal service providers, it makes

A General Durable Power of Attorney is one of four basic estate planning documents I recommend for every client, along with a Last Will and Testament, a Living Will, and a Health Care Power of Attorney. They often ask, “Why do I need a Power of Attorney (POA)? I have all my faculties and am

Procrastination is one of the biggest hurdles we all face in getting our estate planning done. Most Tennesseans know they need a will and other coordinated documents in place. We intend to get to it at some point, but feel too busy, or lack the pressing motivation, to contact an attorney and complete this essential life

A Revocable Living Trust is a common and popular tool of estate planning. As opposed to trusts that are created in a will and take effect after a person’s death, a living trust is created by a person (called the Grantor) during their life. The trust can own any of their assets; it names a trustee to handle

What can you do if a loved one passes away and you did not have a close relationship? Maybe your father is in a second marriage with children and you only spoke with him a few times a year. Or you are recently estranged from a family member or their close circle. You know that you

Most estate planning clients are either retired, elderly folks who are thinking about how to best leave their assets to their adult children and grandchildren, or are middle aged married couples making sure they have the right plan in place in case they pass away unexpectedly and leave minor children behind. Naming a guardian for the

We were all shocked and saddened when film star Debbie Reynolds passed away just one day after her daughter, actress Carrie Fisher. Not only is it an extremely emotional time for the family, dealing with two deaths at the same time can complicate inheritance questions. For example, what if Ms. Fisher’s will left half of

It’s January! New Year’s resolutions are in full swing. We are collectively hitting the gym and committed to our diets (for now). Here is another resolution you might want to consider: let 2017 be the year you (finally) get your estate plan in order. Most of my will clients tell me they have been intending to

Are you one of the 55% of American adults who do not have a Last Will and Testament in place? Or did you prepare yours years ago and need to revisit your estate plan? If so, the holidays can be a great time to get your affairs in order. The end of the year can