Estate Planning Failures
Dying without a will can cause some very serious consequences!
Here is a list of famous people who have died without any Estate Plans in place.
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was shot on April 14th, 1865 which is the day before the end of tax season. Although they did not have income tax back then he had an estate that today would be well over a million dollars. He had to have the estate administered by a supreme court justice.
Prince
Prince died with an estate of 300 million without a Will.
Sonny Bono
Sonny Bono died as you know in a skiing accident and he had an estate worth 1 million to 15 million. He had remarried to a new wife after Cher and he also had a separate love child. After he died Cher filed a claim in the probate court for unpaid alimony. She had to have that money even though she had an estate of as much as 300 million.
Pablo Picasso
Pablo Picasso died in 1973 and he had assets in multiple countries. It cost 30 million dollars to get his estate taken care of.
Martin Luther King
Martin Luther King was assassinated and died without a will. When his children became adults they’ve all fought tooth and nail about the legacy in court creating a lot of costs.
Jimi Hendrix
One of my favorite artists, Jimi Hendrix, died in 1970 at age 27. He did not have a will. He probably would have wanted his brother Leon to receive part of his estate and perhaps his dad. What happened was his dad Alejandro (Big Al) received his entire estate. Then Big Al remarried, adopted another child Janie Hendricks and when Big Al died all the money was destined for Janie so Leon the brother was cut out. What ensued was 45 years of litigation, which is longer than the normal probate, but they finally came to an agreement 45 years after his passing.
Warren Berger
Warren Berger, the former chief justice of the supreme court, had a will and he said my executors will pay first all the claims against my estate. It was reported that he had created a significant estate tax liability that could have been avoided
B.B. King
B.B. King died in 2015. He had 11 children. He was a busy man and his children have been fighting for control of the assets ever since he passed. Many times the claims from the children have been thrown out from the court.
Estate Planning…Don’t leave earth without it!
Hopefully this short list gives you an idea of what can happen if you leave earth without considering what will happen to your estate. Whether big or small, we highly recommend that you take the time to consider what you want to happen to your estate after you are gone.
Estate Planning has many benefits and will ensure that your beneficiaries receive everything you want to leave to them!
Have questions or concerns about Estate Planning?
Call the office of Rex Crandell Firm in Walnut Creek, CA at 925-934-6320 to schedule some time to sit down and go over your options!
