Estate Planning

We have written a lot about the importance of Wills and estate planning. Estate planning typically involves creating a number of legal documents  (Will and Testament, trusts, powers of attorney, documents and healthcare directives). But estate planning is also the process of organizing and managing your assets during your lifetime and determining how they will be distributed after your death. It involves making decisions about things like who will inherit your assets, who will manage your affairs if you become incapacitated, and how your assets will be used to provide for your loved ones. These documents allow you to specify your wishes and appoint individuals to carry out your instructions. It is obvious as to why estate planning is important, but many people do not properly plan out their estate or their Last Will and Testament. If ordinary people are not properly planning out their estate, you can imagine the mistakes that celebrities make.

Here are some major mistakes celebrities make when it comes to estate planning: 

1. The most glaringly obvious one is to not have a Last Will in place. What happened when Jimi Hendrix died? What happened when Prince died? What happened when Amy Winehouse died? Everything was a legal mess. 

2. To create a letter of wishes for your Executor. This  makes sense, because you do not want a letter to contravene the wishes in your Last Will. You want to have everything carried out in your Last Will and Testament the way it is written. 

 3. Pick a great choice for Executor. You probably don’t want to be the type of person who leaves everything to their butler (one celebrity made that mistake). 

 4. This is a no-brainer, but tell your Executor where your Will is stored. Yes, it sounds obvious, but Olympian Florence Griffith Joyner did not do this when she passed away. You can read more on that here. 

Keep all of the above in mind when planning for your estate and creating your Will. 

Pat Bowlen, the billionaire owner of the Denver Broncos, passed away with what was supposed to be an orderly, organized, and air-tight estate plan. Pat Bowlen was a former owner of the Denver Broncos, a professional American football team in the National Football League (NFL). He was the team’s owner from 1984 until his death in 2019, and during his ownership, the Broncos won three Super Bowl titles and made it to the playoffs numerous times. Bowlen was highly regarded as one of the most successful and influential owners in the NFL, and he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2019. Pat Bowlen purchased the Broncos in 1984 and the franchise won three Super Bowls during his ownership. It was estimated that he purchased the Broncos for a cool $78 million dollars. Bowlen ceded control of the team in July 2014 when he acknowledged that he was suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. Bowlen passed away in 2019 and the Pat Bowlen Trust has assumed ownership since then. 

Everything was supposed to go smoothly after his death. 

The exact opposite happened. 

Bowlen’s surviving family members, which included his seven children from two marriages, his three siblings (who were various co-owners at different points in time with their own children) all complicated the estate plan with their constant bickering. 

The complications with the estate plan are as follows:

1. 1.  The removal three trustees as the estate’s conservator, and bickering about the appointment of an  independent party to serve as the estate’s conservator.
   2. The current trustees declined a succession plan submitted by Pat’s two daughters from his first marriage, Amie Klemmer and Beth Bowlen Wallace. Annabel Bowlen—Pat’s second wife—“became very upset” when she learned that Beth progressed toward ascension as the controlling owner.

Essentially, even though Pat had everything planned out, family bickering became a contentious problem. You can read more, here. 

This is probably a scenario you have come across before: a couple put off planning their estate when their children were young, thinking there would be lot of time later on. The couple is now nearing their twilight years and still have nothing in writing. This is apparently common for many couples: wealthy or not, planning for one’s estate is a process many put off . If you have (or feel) that you have nothing in the way off assets,  why bother going through (what is purportedly a long-drawn out process of estate planning) if you have little in your name? Even the very words, estate planning, sounds complex, nebulous, almost mysterious. Much like creating a Last Will and Testament, wealthy people are also put off from the process.. There is a mistaken belief that there will always be enough money to cover the estate, taxes, etc., without having to properly plan for it. Does wealth keep you from planning for your estate.

Agricultural conservation easements: If you want to ensure that your farm is preserved for future generations, you may want to consider setting up an agricultural conservation easement. This is a legal agreement that allows you to protect the farm’s natural resources and preserve its agricultural use. If you have a farm business, you’ll need to consider how it will be managed and operated after you’re gone. A business succession plan can help you to ensure that the business continues to thrive and meet the needs of its customers.

It’s important for wealthy individuals to remember that estate planning is an important way to protect their assets and ensure that they are distributed according to their wishes. It can also help to minimize taxes and other costs, which can be especially important for wealthy individuals. If you’re a wealthy individual and you’ve been procrastinating, it’s important to take action and get started as soon as possible.