What You Can Learn From the Estate Planning Mistakes of Others

May 8, 2015
There is much to be learned from the mistakes of others and the celebrity world abounds with cautionary tales when it comes to estate planning.  Even with all the financial resources available to them, celebrities can neglect the basics when it comes to protecting assets. We come across sad tales all the time of “regular”…
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Protecting Our Family When It Matters Most

March 6, 2015
A drama currently playing out in a French courtroom demonstrates that any elderly person can fall victim to financial abuse, even the second wealthiest woman in the world. Lilliane Bettencourt, 92, is heiress to the L’Oreal cosmetics fortune, and Forbes has estimated her worth at $40 billion.  According to a recent New York Times story,…
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Robin Williams’ Family Fight Over Personal Property Not So Funny

February 12, 2015
Robin Williams’ wife Susan has gone to court over personal items she says were taken from the couple’s Tiburon, California, home without her permission. Williams’ children say their father set up a trust that bequeathed the items to them and that his wife of three years is acting against his wishes. Could this have been…
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No One Feeling Good About Continuing Battle Over James Brown Estate

January 28, 2015
James Brown was known for his signature song, “I Feel Good,” but no one is feeling good about the battle that is still being waged over his estate almost a decade after his death in 2006. The majority of Brown’s estate – estimated to be in the tens of millions of dollars – was distributed…
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“And the Estate Planning Oscar Goes To…” Lessons on Film About Family

January 21, 2015
The film “Black Heirlooms” has not received any Oscar nominations. It was made by 32-year-old Amanda Brown, whose grandmother’s long-term illness ripped her once close-knit family apart for lack of long-term care planning. Profiled recently in the New York Times, the film is “about the extended uncomfortable, intergenerational conversations that we do not have enough…
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Joan Rivers Has Last Laugh Through Use of a Family Trust

December 18, 2014
Famous comedienne, Joan Rivers, who died unexpectedly on September 4, 2014, from what is alleged to be a botched medical procedure, made millions making us all laugh. Some of her most infamous routines centered around skewering celebrities, most notably legendary actress Elizabeth Taylor. For Rivers’ comedy, everyone and everything was fair game for exposure. But…
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Hollywood Legend Lauren Bacall Leaves Large Estate and Two Potentially Large Headaches for Heirs

October 7, 2014
Legendary Hollywood actress Lauren Bacall died on August 12, 2014, leaving behind an estate estimated at $26.6 million and three children who face a couple of potentially serious problems that could have been avoided through effective estate planning. Bacall, who was married to Humphrey Bogart and Sam Robards, passed away in her New York City…
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Robin Williams: A Lesson in Deeds, Not Words + One Error in Planning

August 22, 2014
One of the most eloquent responses to Robin Williams’ death came from his best friend Billy Crystal, who posted on Twitter simply:  “No words.” When someone close to us dies — especially in a sudden and tragic way — the grief is so deep that we truly don’t have any words to describe it.  And…
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Casey Kasem’s Estate Planning Not in Anyone’s Top 40

August 1, 2014
Casey Kasem, the celebrity radio host who counted down America’s Top 40 popular songs for years, died on June 15 at the age of 82 and left behind an estimated $80 million fortune.  He also left a family feud of biblical proportions between his surviving spouse and his three children from a prior marriage.  This…
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Legal Steps to Take When Facing a Dementia Diagnosis

July 17, 2014
Maria Shriver knows the devastation of Alzheimer’s disease firsthand.  Her beloved father Sargent Shriver, founder of the Peace Corps and one-time candidate for Vice President of the United States, died of the disease in 2011 after being diagnosed in 2003. Often called “the long goodbye,” Alzheimer’s disease affects more than five million Americans and its…
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Celebrity Estate Planning

Stephen “tWitch” Boss Dies Without a Will

Stephen Laurel Boss, also known as “tWitch,” was an American DJ, hip-hop dancer, choreographer, television producer, and actor whose personality lit up the stage on So You Think You Can Dance and as a producer and frequent guest host on…

Anne Heche Dies With Conflict Around Her Will, Leaving Her Sons & Estate In Legal Limbo—Part 2

Actress Anne Heche died this August following a tragic car accident, leaving behind two young sons: Homer Heche Laffoon, age 20, and Atlas Heche Tupper, age 13.  Last week, in part one, we covered the way uncertainty around Heche’s estate…

Anne Heche Dies With Conflict Around Her Will, Leaving Her Sons & Estate In Legal Limbo—Part 1

Actress Anne Heche died this August following a tragic car accident in which she plowed her vehicle into a West Los Angeles home, where it burst into flames. After being pulled from the wreckage, the Emmy Award-winning actress was hospitalized…

A Not-So-Happy Accident: Bob Ross’s Estate Planning Failures —Part 2

As the host of the wildly popular The Joy of Painting TV series on PBS, Bob Ross became a pop-culture icon, who was equally famous for his giant head of hair, soothing baritone voice, and folksy demeanor as he was…

A Not-So-Happy Accident: Bob Ross’s Estate Planning Failures —Part 1

As the host of the wildly popular The Joy of Painting TV series on PBS, Bob Ross became a pop-culture icon, who was equally famous for his giant head of hair, soothing baritone voice, and folksy demeanor as he was…

Legendary Rapper DMX Dies With No Will, Millions in Debt, and 15 Children—Part 2

Legendary hip hop artist DMX—born Earl Simmons—passed away on April 9 at age 50 after suffering a massive heart attack a week earlier at his home in White Plains, New York. The heart attack was reportedly triggered by a cocaine…

Legendary Rapper DMX Dies With No Will, Millions in Debt, and 15 Children—Part 1

Legendary hip hop artist DMX—born Earl Simmons—passed away on April 9 at age 50 after suffering a massive heart attack a week earlier at his home in White Plains, New York. The heart attack was reportedly triggered by a cocaine…

Britney Spears’ Conservatorship: The Vital Importance Of Incapacity Planning—Part 2

Since the age of 16, when she burst onto the charts with her debut single, “…Hit Me Baby One More Time,” Britney Spears has been one of the world’s most famous and beloved pop stars. Yet despite her massive fame…

Britney Spears’ Conservatorship: The Vital Importance Of Incapacity Planning—Part 1

Since the age of 16, when she burst onto the charts with her debut single, “…Hit Me Baby One More Time,” Britney Spears has been one of the world’s most famous and beloved pop stars. Yet despite her massive fame…

Aretha Franklin’s Estate Planning Haunts Her Family —Part 2

Nearly three years have passed since Aretha Franklin, known as the “Queen of Soul,” died from pancreatic cancer at age 76. When she first passed away in August 2018, her family thought that Aretha died without any estate plan at…

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