Anna Nicole Smith probate jurisdiction ruling [US SC] News
Anna Nicole Smith probate jurisdiction ruling [US SC]

Marshall v. Marshall, Supreme Court of the United States, May 1, 2006 [ruling that federal courts can in some cases decide disputes which involve state probate laws].

Excerpt from the Opinion per Justice Ginsburg:

the probate exception reserves to state probate courts the probate or annulment of a will and the administration of a decedent's estate; it also precludes federal courts from endeavoring to dispose of property that is in the custody of a state probate court. But it does not bar federal courts from adjudicating matters outside those confines and otherwise within federal jurisdiction.

Read the full text of the Opinion, with a concurrence by Justice Stevens. Reported in JURIST's Paper Chase here.