Law.com this morning has an interesting article about a recent Texas case (Cailloux v. Baker Botts) ordering Baker Botts and Wells Fargo Bank Texas to pay $71 million in damages to estate planning client Kathleen C. Cailloux, a wealthy widow.  A jury had found that the defendants breached their fiduciary duty for failing to disclose all important information to the widow when they recommended that she disclaim more than $60 million from her husband’s estate in favor of the couple’s charitable foundation in order to save more than $30 million in estate taxes without informing her of other estate planning options. The court ordered the defendants to pay the money into a new trust created by the court in which the widow will be allowed to withdraw 5% of the principal yearly.

For more on malpractice awards in tax cases, see here.