I Got COA – L for Christmas

By Doug Chalgian on December 25, 2022

  So, I took this case just to handle the appeal.  I wasn’t involved in the lower court actions, and they were a mess.  What attracted me was...

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Moose Lodge Marriage Buries Litigants

By Doug Chalgian on November 7, 2021

  In the last few weeks of Lynden’s life, he was heavily medicated and receiving hospice care. Notwithstanding, he showed up for his marriage at the Moose Lodge...

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The Sure Thing

By Doug Chalgian on March 27, 2021

There are no sure things in life.  As we see in the case of In Re Estate of Joseph Verga, that statement holds true in the realm of...

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New Article on Exploitation Cases

By Doug Chalgian on February 21, 2019

I mentioned this article in a prior post.  Something I wrote that was published in this month's Michigan Bar Journal.  If you haven't seen it, and want to...

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Capacity Case Illustrates Witness Weight

By Doug Chalgian on February 18, 2019

  This unpublished opinion provides an opportunity to discuss the types of witnesses that are often involved in lack of capacity and undue influence cases, and how they...

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Test of Capacity is a Function of Complexity

By Doug Chalgian on December 1, 2018

Party A argued that because a person executed a financial power of attorney and patient advocate designation in June of 2013, the trial court should have found that...

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Medical Experts Carry Conservatorship Case

By Doug Chalgian on December 2, 2016

Nice analysis in this recent unpublished COA opinion. Click here to read In Re Conservatorship of Stephen Michalak.  Congrats to my colleague Valerie Kutz-Otway for her successful advocacy...

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Litigation Strategies Part VII: The Hands that Rock the Cradle

By Doug Chalgian on March 12, 2016

Petitions, motions, discovery. It all matters.  But when it comes to winning the guardianship/conservatorship case, there is an additional element – managing the court-appointed players.  Specifically, the guardian...

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Playing with Knives

By Doug Chalgian on December 6, 2015

There’s a saying among litigators. It goes like this: Lawyers play with knives but never get cut. The idea (or image) is two lawyers facing each other holding...

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This Could Get Interesting

By Doug Chalgian on September 28, 2015

The Michigan Supreme Court is considering a case involving the issue of a medical provider and Michigan law regarding surrogate decision-making. Specifically, Margaret Roush was a resident of...

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Doug Chalgian

About The Author: Doug Chalgian

I am an estate planning, probate litigating, elder law attorney. This is a blog for clients and professional colleagues. In it I offer my ideas about the state of the law and the practice of law. I believe we are living through a unique period during which the law (which is traditionally slow to change) and society are attempting to evolve to address the explosion of people living long lives. I find these developments fascinating and enjoy being involved in this evolution.