There have been many instances of celebrity estate planning errors that have been brought to the attention of the public. Some of them are more eye-opening than others.

In this post are going to look at two of the more compelling estate planning mistakes that have been made by celebrities.

Marilyn Monroe

Marilyn Monroe did not have close family members because she was raised largely in orphanages and foster homes. Her mother was still alive at the time of her death, but she was institutionalized. Marilyn’s will provided resources for the care of her mother.

75 percent of her estate was bequeathed to her acting teacher Lee Strasberg. At the time of Marilyn’s death Strasberg was married to his second wife Paula Miller. She was an actress in her own right, and and she too was an acting teacher who also instructed Marilyn.

Marilyn Monroe was close to both of the Strasbergs. It would be logical for her to assume that Paula would inherit anything that she left to Lee. Paula was around eight years younger than her husband, and women have longer lifespans.

However, Paula did in fact predecease Lee, and he got remarried to a woman named Anna. Ultimately Anna wound up inheriting everything that was left to Lee by Marilyn Monroe.

This ultimately amounted to tens of million of dollars when she started working with marketing companies to license Marilyn’s image.

Marilyn Monroe never met Anna. You would have to think that she may have preferred a different outcome. She could have ensured this with a different type of estate plan.

Steve McNair

Young adults often fail to execute estate plans because they think that they are not going to be passing away for many years.

Of course, you may not think that you are going to total your new car when drive it off the lot, but you do in fact purchase automobile insurance to be safe.

The well-being of your family is certainly far more important than the financial investment that you make in your automobile. However, studies show that most young adults don’t have an estate plan in place.

The football player Steve McNair did not have a will when he was shot and killed back in 2009.

McNair had assets that exceeded the estate tax exclusion. This added a level of complexity to the case. As a result, his assets were stuck in probate for a very long time, and his family paid the price.

Hopefully, you will live a long and healthy life, but you never know when your time will come. Don’t take chances with the well-being of your loved ones. Consult with an estate planning attorney to put a plan in place if you are currently unprepared.

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Ryan M. DenmanandDennis D. Duffy

Duffy Law Office, PLLC