MIAMI (Legal Newsline) — A beneficiary alleges an attorney's error on a living trust caused her to lose proceeds from a $7 million-plus estate.
Maria Nogara a complaint 28 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida against The Lynn Law Office PC frequently known as Lynn and Steen PC and Joel K. Stein alleging legal malpractice and other claims.
According to her complaint, Nogara was a longtime friend of Carl Doran and was named in his living trust agreement to receive "five percent of the grantor's remaining gross estate." She claims that Doran retained the defendants to draft his second restatement of his living trust in November of 2019 and again in December to draft a third restatement.
Nogara further claims that Doran stated in his trust that his intent was to have none of his children or "their issue" receive anything from the trust. She also claims the third restatement of his trust now provided that she receive 100% of his gross estate. According to Nogara's complaint, Doran's daughter, Amy Lucker, filed a complaint in February of 2021 claiming her father's second and third restatements were invalid.
She alleges that Lucker won her case due to the defendant's failure to execute the trust restatements in accordance with Florida law because they were "signed without a subscribing witness." Nogara claims Doran's estate is worth approximately $7,500,000.
Nogara seeks monetary relief of more than $75,000, interest, trial by jury and all other just relief. She is represented by Eduardo Maura and Luis Machado of Ayala Law PA in Miami.
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida case number 1:22-CV-23142-XXXX