March 2013 Legal Update

I got this in my inbox from a law firm:

DO-IT-YOURSELF WILL LEADS TO UNWANTED RESULT

 If you choose to write your own will, you run the risk of not having your estate distributed [http://ih.constantcontact.com/fs010/1102793168627/img/177.jpg] the way you want, as a
recent case illustrates.

George Z. wanted his estate to go to two of his five children. Instead of seeking out an elder law attorney to advise him on drawing up an estate plan, he decided to write his own will. The will gave his pickup truck to his daughter Diane and his summer property to his son Wayne. Mr. Z. also wrote in the will that he was intentionally leaving out his other three children. 

 The problem with the will was that Mr. Z. did not specify what to do with the remainder of his estate (called a "residuary clause"). While Mr. Z. probably intended that the rest of his estate would go to his favorite children, he didn't state that in the will. Because the will had no residuary clause, the remainder of Mr. Z.'s estate passed under the state law that specifies who inherits when there is no will. A court battle between the adult children began and was resolved, but only after the children had spent much more in attorney fees than their father would have paid to have his will done properly. While you may save some money drafting your own will, you are in danger of making mistakes that can cause unneeded conflict and don't get the result you want.

In regard to my Mr. Z, his attorney didn't forget to designate his automobile - it was the rest of his assets that she liquidated.  She hired herself to force him into guardianship, hired her friends to be guardians then made further money suing me for defamation after I published the crime she committed.  I can't prove how much she made off this Mr. Z but I can prove how much it will cost you to hire this law firm to handle your affairs (based on actual clients) and how much Mr. Z's heirs will inherit after this law firm is done financially exploiting him.

The questions are these:

Do you have 30-60K to hire an attorney to set up your affairs?  

Do you have 100K-1M to hire their friends as your guardian?  

Do you want your attorney to inherit your estate or your family?  George Z may have only wanted 2 of his 5 children to inherit but at least there was money left to inherit and it went to the rightful heirs, not an interloper.

Every time I read about this attorney, she's always putting herself in the middle of the elderly and their loved ones.  It's not surprising that she would write about a family fight.