Can Someone Who Funds Florida Estate Lawsuits Be Stopped From Re-Litigating ?

Every probate lawyer knows a client or an estate beneficiary who has their attorney fees paid for by another.   Can you stop the person who pays those probate lawyers from re-litigating issues ?

July 2, 2014 Florida Estate Case (sort of)

• Interesting commentary and notes by Florida’s 3rd District Court of Appeal in a July 2, 2014 opinion.    The citation is:  39 Fla. L. Weekly D. 1395.
• In this Florida appellate opinion the appeals court talks about and considers whether a person who funded & guided litigation, although NOT a party, may be ESTOPPED from attempting to re-litigate
• The Florida appeals court discussed the issue of ISSUE PRECLUSION
• If all parties actually litigated issues , or could have, and didn’t, then those issues are generally decided and resolved:  no re-litigating or no second bites at the lawsuit apple

Executor of Will Bound By French Court

• What was interesting about this recent Florida appeals case was that they made reference to a 1970 New York estate case
• The New York probate case , Watts v. Swiss Bank Corp., held that an executor of a will in New York was bound by a decision of a French court (cite:  265 N.E. 2nd 739)
• In that New York-France probate case, the New York executor (what we in Florida call the Personal Representative) actually hired probate lawyers and controlled, in part, the defense of the estate lawsuit or proceeding in France
• Question:   Why did this Florida Court refer to this 1970 New York case when the Florida Probate Code and caselaw seem to address this issue?
• After all, isn’t one of the threshold questions for a Florida probate lawsuit whether one has legal standing to bring the probate suit or whether one can even participate in the Palm Beach probate?