Celebrity Estate Planning Fail #1 - Prince Rogers Nelson (“Prince”) Estate
$156,400,000 is a lot of money to leave in limbo. And that’s exactly what the famous singer Prince did when he failed to create his own estate plan. At the age of 57, Prince’s fortune, mainly consisting of his music publishing rights, was left in the hands of the Minnesota probate court to coordinate the distribution among Prince’s then living heirs.
To make matters more complicated, Prince wasn’t married and had no children, so the estate was up for grabs by his 6 siblings who decided to fight over the estate for about 6 years - and 2 of the siblings died during the probate process (because it’s that much fun).
But for some reason, with millions in the bank, Prince never got around to making a phone call to get his estate in order. Not even a will.
The result? Probate, taxes, penalties, and a lot of confusion. Even if you are able to forget the tens of millions of dollars in taxes (40% Federal estate tax plus 16% state estate tax) and additional millions spent in legal fees and fighting, the worst part is that Prince didn’t have a say in how he wanted his legacy to be kept alive.
Put differently, Prince chose not to have a say by failing to get his estate plan in order. If he had something in place to explain how he wanted his lifelong work to be administered after his death, then what is now a nightmare could have been a wonderful gift to those he cared about most. After all, estate planning is about making sure your wishes are fulfilled.
Is your estate plan up to date? Does it accurately reflect your wishes?
If you’d like peace of mind, then give me a call at 781 202 6368, email jlento@perennialtrust.com, or click here to schedule your free personal consultation.
I’m always happy to help,
Joseph M. Lento, J.D.
Your Local Estate Planning Attorney
For client testimonials, please visit: www.PerennialEstatePlanning.com
Conveniently located at 477 Main Street, Stoneham, MA 02180
Other helpful links:
https://markjkohler.com/learn-what-not-to-do-with-an-estate-plan/
