Valdez v. Bernard

A number of civil disputes arose from the discovery that a probate clerk had looted millions of dollars from the estates of Bexar County residents who had died intestate. The case involved an intestate estate defrauded of more than half a million dollars. More than a decade after the estate’s administration had closed, and more than three years after learning that the rogue clerk had misappropriated funds from the estates, the intestate’s heirs petitioned by equitable bill of review to re-open the estate, alleging that the estate administrator breached fiduciary duties and fraudulently concealed information about the estate’s assets. The probate court granted the equitable bill of review and set aside the orders closing probate. Thereafter, the heirs successfully litigated their claims against the administrator and were awarded damages against the administrator and his surety. The court of appeals affirmed. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that the heirs’ bill of review was untimely because it was filed more than two years after they received information that would cause a reasonably prudent person to make inquiry, which, if pursued, would lead to the discovery of the concealed cause of action. View "Valdez v. Bernard" on Justia Law