Practice Areas
No matter how intelligent or how experienced the lawyer, no one can know everything or be an expert in everything. Most lawyers specialize, and this firm is no different. The focus of this law firm is on areas of the law where we can help people. Below are some areas we focus on.
One of the rights that you have is the right to decide how your property will be distributed after your death. You can do this by naming beneficiaries in a Will or a Trust. You can do this by naming beneficiaries on bank and investment accounts. You can even file a Transfer on Death Deed with the property records so that your home passes directly to your beneficiaries after your death. However, this requires the proper drafting and execution of estate planning documents. Estate plans tend to be either Will-based or Trust-based. A Will passes property through a court supervised process called probate, while Trusts usually pass property without court involvement. Poorly drafted documents can create more problems than they solve. If you haven't taken steps to create an estate plan, then a court will apply the Texas rules of intestacy to determine who gets your property.
When considering estate planning, most people tend to think of Wills and Trusts. However, in some ways there are even more important questions to be answered. Who takes care of your minor children after you are gone? Who makes medical decisions for you if you become disabled? Who takes care of your finances if you are unable to do so? If you lay out your wishes ahead of time in proper estate planning documents, your wishes will normally be honored. If you haven't laid out your wishes ahead of time, those decisions will be made by a judge in a probate court.
The Law Office of Jeffrey V. Gillis, PLLC can assist you with the preparation of estate planning documents, from a simple Power of Attorney, up to and including a complete Estate Plan.
Probate is the court supervised process where a dead person's creditors are paid and his assets are either:
1) distributed to his named beneficiaries, if he had a Will, or
2) distributed under the intestacy laws of Texas if there is no Will, or if the Will is invalid.
Under the laws of Texas, there are very limited cases in which a non-lawyer can probate an estate. In the vast majority of cases an estate cannot be probated without a lawyer.
The Law Office of Jeffrey V. Gillis, PLLC an assist you in the probate of a Will, determination of heirship, transfers of property, and dealing with the creditors of the deceased.
What happens when a person becomes disabled? If that person has a valid Durable Power of Attorney (POA), then the person named in the POA has the powers mentioned in the POA. That could include making investments, selling property, paying bills, etc. If that person has a Medical Power of Attorney, then the person named in that document has the authority to make medical decisions on behalf of the disabled person.
If there are no Powers of Attorney, then a court supervised process called a Guardianship may be required.
A Guardian of the Person has authority from the court to make decisions for the physical well-being of the Ward, including residence and medical treatment.
A Guardian of the Estate has authority from the court to make decisions related to the property of the Ward, including making investments, selling property, paying bills, etc.
Under Texas law, a Guardianship is usually a last resort. A Guardianship cannot be granted if there are less restrictive means of protecting the Ward. If there are Powers of Attorney in place that allow for the protection of the Ward, a court will be very hesitant to grant a Guardianship. Two frequent areas where Guardianships are granted are: 1) the Ward became disabled without having valid Powers of Attorney in place, or 2) a mental disability that occurred before the child became an adult prevents the Ward from having the capacity to sign Powers of Attorney.
Jeff has argued Guardianship cases before a number of Houston area probate courts and has succeeded in having Guardianships granted.
Before going to law school, Jeff spent over 25 years in the working world. Most of that time was spent: reading, writing, negotiating, interpreting, managing, and otherwise fighting over contracts. If you are in a contractual dispute, if you have been cheated on a contract or cheated by a contractor, or if someone used deceptive trade practices against you, then you might have recourse in the law.
Texas recognizes some specific causes of action in these types of cases. Breach of Contract occurs when one party to a contract fails to perform some of their obligations on that contract. Breach of Contract is one area of the law allows for the award of attorney's fees against the breaching party.
The Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act outlines specific types of deceptive behavior that are prohibited by law. Violators of the DTPA can be on the hook for attorney fees and up to treble damages.
The Law Office of Jeffrey V. Gillis, PLLC can assist you with these types of cases.