Appeals Court Orders New Trial in $3.2M Trust Fight
A Maryland appellate court reversed a judgment giving one daughter sole control of a $3.2 million family trust.
Updated on Nov. 2, 2026 in Financial Planning
Live Poll
Do you trust courts to fairly resolve family inheritance disputes in your community?
The Appellate Court of Maryland ordered a new trial in a dispute over the $3.2 million S.K. Amini Trust, overturning a circuit court judgment that gave one daughter sole control of the estate. The two excluded sisters alleged undue influence after the trial judge barred their handwriting expert from testifying.
Why it matters
The ruling means the contested estate will be litigated again rather than settled under the original judgment. It also highlights how procedural rulings on expert testimony can determine the outcome of inheritance disputes for families in Maryland.
The S.K. Amini Trust holds $3.2 million, and the father died at age 95 before the dispute arose. The circuit court's exclusion of the handwriting expert, based on missed discovery deadlines, is the central unresolved question on retrial.
The players
Kooresh Sobhani
Sobhani is the lawyer who prepared the S.K. Amini Trust documents and was allowed to testify remotely at the circuit court trial.
The details
Two daughters found documents with handwritten Farsi notes in family records, and one sister claimed the handwriting belonged to the favored sister. The circuit court excluded a handwriting expert hired by the challenging sisters, but allowed the trust's drafting lawyer, Kooresh Sobhani, to testify remotely.
Timeline
The father died at age 95; the date was not specified in the source.
October 2026: The Appellate Court of Maryland issued its opinion ordering a new trial.
Market Dynamics
The ruling applies appellate scrutiny to a trial judge's exclusion of an expert under discovery and scheduling rules in a Maryland probate case. It shows that procedural deadlines can carry substantive consequences in contested inheritance disputes.
Families naming a single beneficiary or trustee can face costly litigation if other heirs allege undue influence. Reviewing trust documents and keeping clear records of how they were prepared may reduce the risk of disputes.
The takeaway
Clear documentation and careful handling of trust disputes can shape whether a case ends quickly or is retried for years. Anyone planning an estate should consider how procedural requirements might affect later challenges.
Further reading
For related context on estate and inheritance planning, see Financial Planning.
Source note: This article includes information reported by The Times of India.
Live Poll
Do you trust courts to fairly resolve family inheritance disputes in your community?
