Hot Topics in Trusts and Estates Law 2016

Evidentiary Issues in Will Contests: A Primer will cover issues of relevance and admissibility, including the Dead Man’s Statute (CPLR 4519), attorney-client privilege (CPLR 4503), doctor-patient privilege (CPLR 4504), hearsay, exceptions to the hearsay rule (including state of mind and res gestae), admissions of the alleged undue influencer, lay opinion evidence, expert opinion evidence, and the admissibility of hospital and business records.

E-Discovery in Surrogate’s Court will cover issues of both a technical and legal nature on the burgeoning role of e-discovery in Surrogate's Court litigation. It will provide a very rudimentary primer on the technical aspects of electronically stored information. On the legal side of the topic, the program will consider the procedures and costs of obtaining e-discovery as well as issues such as preservation of data, sanctions for spoliation, authentication, admissibility, and assault on privileged material. Finally, we will consider the various protocols established by the courts, both federal and state.