A widely publicized estate planning case that is ongoing is the disputed estate of Lisa Marie Presley and new developments were recently reported by the LA Times. Lisa Marie (daughter of Elvis Presley) died in January of 2023, leaving behind a trust that purported to leave control of her estate to her adult daughter, Riley Keough. However, Priscilla Presley (Lisa Marie’s mother) has challenged the validity of the documents that changed the Trust. In 2016 Lisa Marie amended her will, naming her two eldest children as co-executors. Her son pre-deceased her. She filed to dissolve her marriage to Michael Lockwood that same year. Lisa Marie and Michael Lockwood were parents of two minor twins. The new development in this case is that the court has appointed the father of the twins, Michael Lockwood as the legal guardian of the twins.

Takeaway Lesson for Estate Planning from this Case – Avoid Conflicts of Interest

Why was Michael Lockwood a good choice for a guardian ad litem?

Although we do not know the specific basis for the court’s ruling on this issue, the LA Times quoted Michael Lockwood’s lawyer explaining why Lockwood was a good choice: He said that his client was ready, able and willing to protect the twins’ interests and that he has a good, collegial, familial relationship with all of the parties involved. Perhaps more importantly, there is no conflict of interest regarding appointment because the proposed guardian is not a beneficiary of the trust instrument at issue. 

What is the estate planning lesson we can learn from this new development in this case? Avoid conflicts of interest.

When doing estate planning, an important consideration should be any real conflicts of interest of potential conflicts of interest. When you are alive, you are in the best position to know your beneficiaries, their relationship to each other, and try to look down the road to understand what motivations may be in play after you have passed. When you meet with your attorney to do your estate planning, it will likely be helpful for you to talk through any concerns that you might have about conflicts of interest and the possible methods to avert your worries. 

What other estate planning lessons can be learned from this case? The importance of following procedures and keeping all documents up to date. 

Some of the issues that are in dispute in this trust case are the authenticity and validity of the 2016 alleged amendment to Lisa Marie’s trust amendment. Pricilla has alleged that it wasn’t delivered to her during Lisa Marie’s lifetime, that the date was added via PDF, that the document misspells Priscilla’s name, that the signature is on a separate page from the substantive provisions, that the signature looks inconsistent with her usual signature and that the purported 2016 Amendment was neither witnessed nor notarized.

The most important takeaway from this case for anyone hoping to avoid estate planning disputes in the future is the importance of following the procedures required by the will, keeping it updated, being accurate, and fully complying with all of the requirements in the documents.

Contact an Experienced Estate Planning Firm

Estate planning that is kept up to date, drafted accurately, and performed in compliance with the terms of the estate instrument is vital for avoiding estate planning disputed. For this reason, finding an experienced law firm to assist you is essential in making sure that your estate planning is done properly to avoid disputes after you have passed. At the Law Office of David Knecht, we want to help you create a current and accurate estate plan that will help you achieve your goals. Contact us at 707-451-4502. 

It’s a famous phrase that failing to plan is the same as planning to fail, and this anecdote is especially true in the realm of estate planning. The most important step you can take with an estate plan is the first one: getting started, and therefore, the most important estate planning mistake of all would be to do nothing. But what are the other common mistakes people make in estate planning? This article will summarize typical estate planning mistakes to avoid with source material based on.

Failing to prepare for incapacity. 

Many people only think of an estate plan as how to divide their assets after they die, but preparing for incapacity is very important, as you never know whether disease, accident or age may take away your ability to care for yourself. It should identify the people you want to authorize to make important decisions on your behalf with regard to your money, your healthcare, your end of life wishes, etc., and then the estate plan should enable them to do so. 

Not including funeral and burial wishes. 

Don’t assume your family members know your wishes. If you have strong feelings about certain issues, such as cremation vs. burial etc., those wishes need to be communicated in your estate plan. 

Not considering tax implications of transferring property. 

The famous saying that nothing is certain except death and taxes is true, but different estate planning tools have various tax consequences, so it’s important to think through the tax implications when your estate plan is created.

Not naming contingency decision makers. 

The unexpected happens, so you need back-up decision makers in your plan. You and your spouse may perish in an accident together or a child may predecease you. Don’t assume that your family will remain unchanged as your estate plan ages. 

Not keeping track of beneficiary designations. 

It is important and can be somewhat challenging to make sure your estate plan matches the information in all your accounts and assets. Make sure that you keep the information relating to each specific asset matching your intentions. 

Contact an Experienced Estate Planning Attorney

An excellent way to avoid making estate planning mistakes is to use the services of an experienced estate planning attorney. Here are the Law Office of David Knecht, we have extensive experience with estate planning and will help you think through the potential challenges or various scenarios that may arise to create a plan that will accomplish your goals. Contact us at 707-451-4502.

For some who are creating an estate plan, a fair distribution may not be an equal distribution. Reasons for this may vary. Perhaps one child is already wealthy while another is needy, perhaps someone in the family is involved in the family business, perhaps certain assets might be more meaningful to one than another. This article will summarize some of the considerations to take into account when creating an estate plan with unequal inheritances, with ideas sourced from https://www.kiplinger.com/retirement/estate-planning-unequal-inheritances-talking-is-key.

Talking to your beneficiaries while you are still alive is key. 

Communication is highly advisable when you have an estate plan with unequal distributions. 

• Explaining the reasons why you have decided to distribute your estate unequally will go a long way in helping your beneficiaries accept your decisions. 
• Communication now is more likely to promote family harmony after you are gone.
• The relationship between risk and reward is a common balancing act in life, so if you explain your assessment of the risks and rewards of each asset to the beneficiaries, it will help then understand the fair approach behind your unequal gift distribution. 

Addressing differences in need. 

There are many strategies for addressing differences in need, and this section will highlight a few approaches. 

• You may consider involving your beneficiaries in a discussion before you make your decisions on estate planning to get their input as to what they believe is fair. 

• You may want to pull the wealthy child aside and let him or her know that you will be giving them unequal inheritances, but you hope that they will choose to share it with the more needy siblings. 

• If you plan on donating to a charity, you may want to prepare your children with a good explanation of why you believe the charity is in more need of the assets than they are. 

Remember that estate plans are not a cure all. 

An estate plan is about wealth transfer, and that is all it can accomplish. 

• Don’t expect your beneficiaries to change their natures. If you know someone is selfish or hostile or if there is bad blood between family members, you shouldn’t expect that to change just because you are gone. Plan ahead with the personalities you know in mind. 

• Consider wealth education. If you have substantial assets, you may want to think about what type of wealth education you can provide to your beneficiaries to allow them to effectively utilize the wealth when you are gone. Many estate planning professional will be happy to include your children in discussions about the pros and cons of different estate planning tools, such as trusts, to help them understand and be involved in what will eventually be their future.

Contact an Experienced Estate Planning Attorney

Estate planning involves many important decisions and involving your family members will likely ensure a smoother transition when you are gone. Here are the Law Office of David Knecht, we have extensive experience with estate planning and would be happy to educate or involve your beneficiaries as you see fit. We can help you feel confident, understood and supported as you plan for the future. Contact us at 707-451-4502.