Thomas Kincaid, famous for being the “Painter of Light”, recently passed on. He had been separated from his wife for two years and his divorce case had not been settled. Mr. Kincaid had a girlfriend that he had lived with for eighteen (18) months who he reportedly planned to marry when his divorce was final.
When Thomas Kincaid died recently in his mid-50s, he did not have a current Estate Plan. His old Will left his assets to his estranged wife. He tried to make two handwritten Wills. The Probate Court found both attempted handwritten wills to be invalid. Both handwritten Wills left his assets to his live-in girlfriend.
Mr. Kincaid’s estranged wife will inherit his Estate. She also sued his girlfriend to keep her from talking to the press. All of this could have been avoided had Mr. Kincaid kept his Estate Plan current and up-to-date.
When he separated from his wife, he should have had an experienced Estate Planning lawyer prepare a new Estate Plan for him. Especially, if he had other relationships he wanted to reward, such as his live-in girlfriend.
Three things are always changing in your life: (1) your relationships; (2) what you own; and (3) the law.
Here, Mr. Kincaid’s relationships changed as he and his wife had been in a bitter divorce battle, and he was taking legal actions to protect his interests while he was alive, but he did not take proper legal action to protect his interests in the event he passed on suddenly—which he did. All of this could have been avoided had he kept his Estate Plan current.
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™.