Probate & Trust Litigation

A resource for lawyers and the public in Massachusetts and New Hampshire for information on will contests, trust disputes, guardianships, conservatorships, elder exploitation, fiduciary duty claims, and other probate litigation disputes.


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Excellent Article On The NH Foundation Act

My partner Steve Burke, Thanda Brassard of Fiduciary Trust Company, Von E. Sanborn of Day Pitney LLP, and Constance Shields of Withers Bergman LLP have made a significant contribution to the literature discussing NH Foundation Act with the publication of “The New Hampshire Foundation Act: A Solid Foundation for Wealth Management on a Global Scale” appearing in Estates, Gifts & Trusts Journal published by Bloomberg BNA. I highly recommend it.

NH has serially modernized its trust and estate law to become among the most attractive and accommodative jurisdictions in the country for the siting of trusts.  Reflecting the ambition and vision of these efforts, NH with the passage of the New Hampshire Foundation Act became the first state in the country to allow the establishment of non-charitable foundations, including the domestication of foreign foundations.  Families in civil law countries where the law may be incompatible with some common law trust concepts are now able to transfer the management of their wealth to NH and enjoy the the benefits of our state’s rich and evolving trust law.  Our aspirations are global.

(Note: Ralph Holmes is currently retired from McLane Middleton. For information on this or other probate litigation issues, please contact Alexandra Cote at alexandra.cote@mclane.com.)