We often are asked by one family member, who may a beneficiary of a parent’s trust (or will), what rights does that family member have when Mom or Dad is still alive and another family member has a power of attorney and/or is the trustee of the surviving parent’s trust. This usually arises because one family member may be suspicious of another family member’s management of the parents’ affairs and the “manager” may be less than forthcoming. While Mom or Dad is still alive (but the estate is managed by a trustee or via a power of attorney), are sibling beneficiaries entitled to demand an account of, and other financial information about, their parents’ estate’s assets and/or the management of same?
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Issue Presented:
I often get questions from my business owner clients about the kinds of descriptions or adjectives that are permissible to describe their product in advertisements. Can they say this product is the “best in the world,” for example. Can they say their product is “faster” or “more powerful” or “more innovative” than their competitors? Can they assert their product is “superior” or “the most advanced in the universe?”
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Lewis Operating Corp. v. Superior Court (Cal.App. 4 Dist. 2011) 2011 WL 5429554, 1
In this case, the court was asked to determine whether a landlord who rents an apartment for residential use may enforce against the tenant an agreement to waive liability for the landlord's negligence. In general, the answer is clearly “no.” However, where the waiver in question relates to the landlord's operation of a tenant-only health club or exercise facility (that is, use of amenities rather than non-core functions of the property) the waiver may be enforceable and may bar the tenant’s suit against the landlord.
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Duncan v. McCaffrey Group, Inc. (Cal.App. 5 Dist., 2011) 2011 WL 5110475, 7
What happens when you sign a contract and then, in a dispute over the contract language, the other side tries to introduce oral evidence that contradicts the written word? In Duncan, the court of appeal did not allow the introduction of such evidence because of the inclusion of a “merger” or “entire agreement” clause.
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