By Marilyn Tennissen
Southeast Texas Record
Charles A. Loper Jr.
For almost 30 years, Charles Loper Jr. has worked hard to build his financial planning service in Frisco, Texas, into an enterprise serving 40,000 customers in 38 states. But a lawsuit he calls “frivolous” filed five years ago has threatened Loper’s success and the livelihood of his 350 employees.
In December 2007, three Texarkana residents filed a class action against a number of estate planning companies, alleging they were duped into buying useless living trusts. Among the companies named in the litigation were Charles Loper & Associates USA and its affiliated CLA Estate Services and insurance services, even though the plaintiffs later admitted they had no idea why Loper’s companies were even named in the suit.
After five years, Loper and CLA were voluntarily dismissed from the litigation, but damage had been done.
“This case has been a nightmare,” Loper told the Southeast Texas Record in a recent interview. “We spend a lot of money to do things right, but this suit threw us in with those companies that don’t.”
If interested in discussing estate planning/asset protection, you can contact Laura Bianchi, Chair of RLG’s Estate Planning/Asset Protection Department, @ lbianchi@roselawgroup.com
