The Daily Law Blog

The 8th Circuit Court of Appeals recently rendered an unpublished opinion, Kiddie v. Copeland , Case No. 17-2814 , involving the statute of frauds, and its application to an agreement to divided a deceased grandfather's property.  First, what is the statute of frauds anyway and why should you care? The statute of frauds is a common law rule that has been codified in most states, and requires that certain contracts must be in writing to be enforceable.  Among those contracts affected, are: (1) contracts to answer for the debt of another ( Ark. Code Ann. 4-59-101 ); (2) agreements to be made in consideration of marriage ( Ark. Code Ann. 4-59-101 ); (3) agreements that are not to be performed within one year from the date of the agreement ( Ark. Code Ann. 4-59-101 ); (4) agreements for the sale, lease, or transfer of land ( Ark. Code Ann. 4-59-101 --102 ); (5) contracts for the sale of goods over $500.00 ( Ark. Code Ann. 4-2-201 ; and (6) contracts to make a will or devi...

Prince passed away last Thursday, and while I personally have not finished mourning, the media has moved on from his passing and now is speculating about the inheritance of his property.  I imagine that the talk will only increase since it was recently asserted in court filings that he died without a will or other testamentary plan in place. It is a fair question.  Several people cruise through life without a will.  It is especially common for young professionals, the generation that grew up listening to Prince.  Truth be told, young professionals, along with newlyweds, are the demographics who may need an estate plan in place the most.  I'll explain in more detail in a future post. First, let's see what would happen if Prince had owned Arkansas property, and died without a will. Inheritance Laws In Arkansas  Without a testamentary plan in place, inheritance of all property is dictated by Arkanas law.  That's right, the Arkansas legislature h...