Beastie Boys musician Adam Yauch recently passed on. He added handwritten language to his Will in an attempt to limit the use and sale of his image or music for advertising and commercial purposes. This was not done properly by an experienced estate planning attorney, but was only a handwritten addition on the Will document itself by Mr. Yauch. This only creates questions. Questions that include whether or not you can understand what message he’s trying to convey as the words he used are confusing. There are questions as to whether or not it is actually his handwriting. Questions regarding whether or not the change is properly authenticated as may be required by state law are also raised.
The handwritten note by Mr. Yauch not only creates confusion, but may invalidate the primary intentions of his Estate Plan.
Make sure that you have your Estate Plan prepared by an experienced Estate Planning attorney who limits their practice to Estate Planning only. Also, any modifications that you make to you Estate Plan should be properly and formally done by that attorney. This is one of the reasons you should have your Estate Plan updated at least every four years. Three things are always changing in Estate Planning: (1) the laws change; (2) what you own changes; and (3) your relationships change.
At the Law Firm of Steven Andrew Jackson, Attorney and Counsellor at Law, we have helped hundreds of families protect themselves and their loved ones, avoid Estate Taxes and Probate Costs, and keep their Estate Plans current with the law through The Customized Protective Estate Planning Solution™.