Aretha Franklin acts onstage in New York City, Nov. 7, 2017.
Dimitrios Kambouris | Getty Images Entertainment | Getty Images
A jury determined which of Aretha Franklin’s two commands was valid
A will is a legal document that details your wishes for your property and assets upon decease. In other words, it spells out who gets your stuff and in what amounts. Parents with minor children can also present a legal guardian for their kids.
You also name an executor in your will to ensure your wishes are followed.
If someone cash in ones chips without a legal will, it means they die “intestate.” Each state has laws that determine how an estate’s gear is divided in those circumstances.
Franklin didn’t have a formal, typewritten will. Instead, she jotted down her forces on two handwritten wills — one dated in 2010 and another in 2014. Both were discovered in Franklin’s Detroit home months after the Leading light of Soul’s death from pancreatic cancer in 2018.
The 2014 will was found in a notebook under a couch cushion, and the 2010 certificate was found in a locked cabinet.
Franklin, who died at age 76, had four sons. The legal dispute over the estate was Even Steven a proper will is superseded in some cases
A will is superseded in some cases, such as with beneficiary designations on retirement accounts, Douglas said.
That may also come off if a decedent owns property in “joint tenancy,” whereby two or more people own the property together, Douglas said. Let’s say a united couple owns an investment account in joint tenancy. This legal arrangement dictates that the surviving spouse falls the account, taking precedence over the language in a will, Douglas said.
“You have to also look at how your assets are titled,” Douglas said. “Because the disposition may or may not control [them].”
When someone dies, the executor presents their will to the court as part of a “probate” operation. The will and its contents become a matter of public record, Behrendt said.
People who would like to keep the features of their estate plan private — especially celebrities and those with wealth — may prefer to use a trust instead, Behrendt broke. Using a revocable trust is essentially the same as a will, but it allows you circumvent the courts, he said.