Why a Document Retention Plan Is Important
We are often called upon to litigate disputes involving lost or missing documents. Contracts, receipts, cancelled checks, invoices and other documents are often the best evidence to prove – or disprove – a claim. A litigant who enters a courtroom without this evidence is at a serious disadvantage. Consider, for example, the case of a vendor who swears that invoices were unpaid. If the buyer cannot produce receipts, cancelled checks or other documentation of payment, the dishonest vendor will have a significant advantage. Likewise, it is difficult to enforce a contract that can’t be produced in its signed form. A well-drafted document retention
Tennessee’s Treatment of Pretermitted Children
The structure of a family tree can change quickly, especially for parents planning to have additional children. Can children born into the family after the execution of a Will still inherit from their parents? If a testator doesn’t provide for one of his or her children in the Will, is that child considered to be disinherited? Tennessee law answers these questions in a statute addressing the concept of an afterborn or “pretermitted child.” A pretermitted child is one that is born or adopted by the parent after a Will is executed by the parent and is not otherwise provided for