Partners in Civil Unions and Marriages Still Need Planning--Part IV of VII

Looking at Jane Doe and Janet Roe and their son John Doe, if Jane and Janet passed on together in a car accident, then John would inherit everything. Let’s assume that Jane and Janet were concerned about John having enough money for college and took out $1 million life insurance policies on each other. Suppose also that they told their parents that they wanted them to handle the money for John until he turned 35, they told everyone they knew that 15-year old John would not be responsible enough to handle money until he was at least 35, and they published a notice in the local newspaper saying that John is not a responsible child, and for the love of God if anything happened to them please do not let John get control of their assets until he turned 35. If Jane and Janet passed on, then John would get everything including the $2 million when he turned 18.

The law is the law ONLY if you fail put your wishes in writing through a properly executed life and estate planning document. In workshops and seminars I hear all of the time “But that’s not what they wanted! Wouldn’t a court try to make sure that their wishes were carried out?” The answer is no, they would not, and there are very good reasons for this.

Judges understand that there are a lot of people who will lie when money is on the line, and deceased people can not come to court to testify about what they wanted. The courts would be packed with people contesting estates if all they had to do was prove “this is what they would have wanted.” If you thought the courts were crowded with frivolous lawsuits before, then imagine what would happen if everyone who died without a properly executed estate plan had to have a judge decide “what they would have wanted,” and anytime there is more than one person who might inherit property, then of course each of them would be arguing that they would have received everything because the deceased person liked them best. The courts would come to a standstill.

Instead, the law on estate plans has been very clear for hundreds of years: either the person has a validly executed trust or will, or they do not. If all of the formalities have been observed in the signing, witnessing and notarization of estate planning documents, then it is valid. If they were not, then it is not valid and no one will try to look at their “intent.” The rationale is: “If they really intended something, then they would have taken the time to put it in writing and have it witnessed and notarized according under law.

It’s clear that even married couples need to make sure their inheritance wishes are put in writing and properly witnessed and notarized. Gay and Lesbian couples can not count on marriage to make sure that their intended wishes are carried out because marriage does not protect as much as you may think. Next, we’ll take a look at some of the other life and estate planning documents and why they are also important to have.