Ms. Janice Brenman is a former prosecutor who was in private practice in Los Angeles from 2001 to 2012 representing nearly 8,000 individuals in over 42 states. She also did 9th Circuit Federal Appeals from 2007 to 2012. She has commented in major legal publications on the subject of legal reform and celebrity influence on the legal system...
Read moreAfter a 15-year legal battle, this illustrious case has hopefully ended once and for all! Yesterday the Ninth Circuit rejected an appeal by Anna Nicole Smith’s legal team. The appeal filed by Smith’s lawyers came only a few weeks after the court ruled in favor of J. Howard Marshall II. The 9th Circuit’s ruling supports the Texas probate court, stating that Anna Nicole Smith was provided for during her brief marriage to Marshall thus has no further claims to his estate. This case has traveled through the state and federal court system, all the way up to the U.S. Supreme Court, and finally approaches closure. The Ninth Circuit’s decision once again demonstrates why legal abuses will not be tolerated. Smith was blessed with more than enough during her short-lived marriage with Marshall. The time is way overdue for Smith’s players to forfeit the game.
Yesterday, legal expert Todd J. Zywicki discussed the 9th Circuit’s recent decision in the Anna Nicole Smith case at the Ritz-Carlton in San Francisco, California. Following is a brief synopsis of the event entitled “True Hollywood Scandals, Part II.” A 9th Circuit ruling in favor of Anna Nicole Smith would have opened the floodgates for forum shopping, a topic explored by me at length. As a result, a win could have created dangerous precedent impacting all estate planning in this country. It was further discussed how it is of paramount importance for bankruptcy judges to show restraint. There is a time and place for bankruptcy court, but a dispute between the Marshall family and Anna Nicole’s legal team hardly justifies clogging our court system.