Celebrity Estate Planning Gone Wrong

When the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin, died in August, she left no will or trust. Therefore, her entire estate will be open to the public eye and probably create family fighting over her assets. With an estimated $80 million fortune, one would assume that she would want privacy after her death in regards to her personal financial affairs.

 

 

According to Michigan law, her estate will be bequeathed to her four sons, with one son represented by a guardian because of his special needs.

She is undoubtedly a super star and talented but she made some enormous estate planning mistakes that you will want to avoid.

If Aretha had left a will, she would have saved on legal fees, litigation and taxes. It will be near impossible to avoid court proceedings in this case.

Aretha Franklin’s lawyer, Don Wilson told the Associated Press, ““I tried to convince her that she should do not just a will but a trust while she was still alive,” Wilson said. “She never told me, ‘No, I don’t want to do one.’ She understood the need. It just didn’t seem to be something she got around to.”

Why would she have left her estate planning undone?

Facing mortality and having the tough conversations can be hard.

I believe one of the best times to complete your estate planning, is when you are healthy.

If you want to talk more about your own estate planning please contact me.