June 10, 2013

• Steven Topazio wrote this May 5, 2014 at 3:07 am

The client, a 20 year old, had a confrontation with his aunt in 2010 following the death of his grandmother (and aunt’s mother) was unsuccessful in stopping the issuance of a restraining order. When the client was unsuccessful again in trying to stop an extension of the restraining order after the initial term, he hired Boston Restraining Order Attorney Steven J. Topazio to represent him. Attorney Topazio discovered that his client’s father (aunt’s brother) was fighting with the aunt over the family’s estate. In preparation for the extension hearing, Attorney Topazio obtained the estate filings and discovered that a petition to partition was also filed in the land court, which indicated that the aunt and client’s father inherited the estate home. A Petition to Partition is a legal device filed in court to divide ownership of real estate. If the petition to partition is granted, the property will either be physically divided or sold with the proceeds distributed equally. Today, Attorney Topazio argued against the extension of the restraining order as well as the issuance of a permanent restraining order. Attorney Topazio told the judge that the aunt was using the restraining order as leverage in the petition to partition case, by abusing her nephew so as to negotiate a bigger inheritance share for herself from the client’s father. Although the restraining order was extended, the court denied a permanent order and acknowledged Attorney Topazio’s argument that the need for a restraining order should end once the family’s estate was settled.