Estate Planning Lessons to be Learned from the Matthew Perry Trust

Matthew Perry, the beloved Friends actor who played Chandler Bing, passed away more than four months ago, and now details about his estate are emerging. This article will highlight some of the interesting aspects of the late actor’s estate, and suggest helpful takeaways that can be learned from this high profile trust example. See for more details: https://people.com/matthew-perry-will-names-executors-estate-1-million-trust-named-after-woody-allen-character-8607717

You can personalize your trust.

  • One lesson that can be learned from the Perry Trust is that you can personalize your trust to send a message to loved ones.
  • People reports that his wishes were that his trust be called the “Alvy Singer Living Trust.”
  • He named his trust after Allen’s alter ego in “Annie Hall,” which had special meaning for Perry because he once recalled that watching “Annie Hall was one of his favorite memories with his mother.

 A trust can be used to protect the privacy of the value of the estate.

  • One of the advantages of a trust is the privacy that it affords the deceased and the family of the deceased.
  • Documents valued Perry’s personal property at about $1 million dollars, but that figure excludes the assess that were already in the trust.
  • This means that his true wealth was kept private from the public, which can be important for anyone who wants to protect their privacy.

 Estate planning can include “obvious” provisions just to be sure.

  • Perry’s estate plan has an example of including a provision that is somewhat obvious just to be sure.
  • He did not have any biological children.
  • However, his will reportedly included a provision that any biological children would not be entitled to anything. We can only speculate why he included that in there, but one might guess it would be to shut down the incentive for any false claims from someone claiming to be a child.

Even though a trust is typically more convenient to administer than a will, it may still require some processing.

  • A trust is often used because it avoids probate proceedings, so it can be faster and less hassle than a will. However, as the Perry case shows, there may be some time and administration involved.
  • Perry died on October 28, 2023 in his Los Angelous home, and detailsa re just emerging in March of 2024.
  • Perry’s executors are reportedly Lisa Ferguson and Robin Ruzan, and they have had to roll over $1 million dollars of personal property into the living trust. 

Contact an Experienced Estate Planning Attorney

For Matthew Perry friends and fans, his early death was a great loss, but from all appearances he successfully planned a smooth transition of his assets to loved ones so that his wishes could be carried out now that he is gone. At the Law Office of David Knecht, we want to help you prepare for the unexpected. We have extensive experience in estate planning and can help you create a plan that is right for you and your loved ones.  Contact us today at 707-451-4502.