Why Prince should have had a Will
I’m disappointed with Prince. Here’s why. He was in a position of influence because of his popularity, but he left as a legacy a court battle over his estate. And worse than that, he left a trail of emotional trauma and possibly financial damage to his family. First, let me update you on where things stand regarding Prince’s estate. Then I’ll tell you why Prince should have had a Will.
Quick update: According to an article in Reuters, 29 people have had their claims denied in the Prince probate proceeding in Minnesota. These folks (I won’t call them vultures) included a professed secret wife who said the CIA had classified their marriage records as top secret. Among other would-be heirs denied by the court were five people who came forward claiming Prince was their biological or adoptive father. Several others claimed their dad was also Prince’s genetic parent by way of an extramarital affair with his mother. There is no final word on who the heirs will be, since some have to submit to genetic testing.
For all the taboos that Prince pushed against (sexuality in particular), he certainly avoided the taboo of talking about death. And I say this all as a fan. I’m originally from Minnesota. And I saw the movie Purple Rain in my hometown of Winona, Minnesota when it first came out. Also, I’m proud to say that my high school (Cotter High) recorded a jazz band album in the same recording studio where Prince recorded the day before in 1980. (I played alto sax.) We could still smell his cigarette smoke. That was a pretty cool experience.
So … here’s why I’m disappointed with him:
- His family is having to fight each other (and a bunch of strangers) over who gets what.
- The lawyers are having a field day raking in fees, which is what Prince would NOT have wanted since he was always so careful to manage his own affairs.
- The people who are inheriting from his estate are getting a financial windfall. This is a recipe for disaster. Various articles on the internet claim that 70% of lottery winners end up in bankruptcy. I couldn’t find any actual research about this. But from my experience, I would not be surprised about this statistic.
- He completely missed an opportunity to help causes that he cared about … perhaps teaching music to underprivileged kids.
Anyway, I would like some popular icons and leaders to actually do a good job of planning for their deaths and give us that kind of positive experience. But, then again, I guess that wouldn’t make it in the news because it would be handled quickly and privately.
If you have any questions about Wills or Trusts, give us a call. We regularly handle high net worth estates, including some famous people. We are discrete with our clients. Prince was not my client, otherwise (a) his estate wouldn’t be an issue like it is, and (b) I wouldn’t be bad-talking about him here (because of our obligation of confidentiality).