Vanity Fair: Oil in the Family

June 2008 – A profile story in Vanity Fair, “Oil in the Family,” profiles the story of the Hunt dynasty and legal actions dividing the family. The publication writes, “In 1935 oil tycoon H.L. Hunt, known as the richest man in America, created what would become a multi-billion-dollar trust for his descendants. Three generations later, a lawsuit by his free-spending grandson is shaking the foundations of that mighty family fortune.”

 “At stake, according to family documents, is an oil-and-gas fortune worth between $2.5 and $4 billion,” according to the article.”

Bill Brewer, who represents Al Hill III, and his client “both maintain that the exchange of charges and countercharges between the warring camps has obscured the core issue:  the family’s plan to sell Hunt Petroleum and to break no just one but two trusts that own the company, and then to seize the proceeds, much sooner than the family ever would have been able to had the trusts remained intact,” writes author Alan Peppard.

Read the article here (subscription required).

D Magazine: Hunt vs. Hunt

March 2008 – D Magazine profiles “the fight inside Dallas’ wealthiest family” in a cover article that chronicles the legal pursuit of Brewer client Al Hill III.

The magazine writes, “Without Al Hill III’s transformation, he might not have had the courage later in life to follow his convictions. Even when it meant accusing his own family of tax evasion and fraud.”

Read the article by clicking here.

Dallas Morning News: A Matter of Trust

February 10, 2008 – The Dallas Morning News takes an in-depth look at a family dispute over “two trusts, belonging to Margaret [Hunt Hill] and her late brother Hassie, with an estimated worth of $2 billion to $4 billion.”

As reported, legal actions have “brought the lights up on a sideshow of two so-called magicians – Tom Hunt, the low-key, low-profile trustee of both trusts and Bill Brewer, Al Hill III’s flashy bulldog of a lawyer.”

 As reported, “William A. Brewer III has built his legal reputation with scorched-earth tactics that have made him sought after and scorned by Dallas’ rich and famous.”

Read the article “Hunt heirs locked in bitter fight over who should have hands on funds' fortunes,” by clicking here.

Dallas Morning News: Hunt Family Embroiled in Trust Lawsuit

November 9, 2007 – The Dallas Morning News reports on a lawsuit by firm client Albert Hill III, the first great-grandson of H.L. Hunt, against the trustees for two family trust funds, alleging mismanagement of about $3 billion in assets.

The article, titled “Hunt Family Embroiled in Trust Lawsuit,” describes the creation of several family trusts and claims from Hill III that he “became a direct beneficiary of the trust when his father, Mr. Albert Hill Jr. ‘disclaimed’ most of his interests in the Margaret Hunt trust March 22, 2005.”

“Al Hill III didn’t sue his father until after his father sued him and said he was not the beneficiary of these trusts, fired him from the family business and filed documents in probate court that made certain claims that would oust Al and his grandchildren from any interests in these trusts,” said William Brewer, attorney for Albert Hill III.