It’s not the Economy, stupid…(this time)
A recent article in MSN money identifies a common problem with estate plans. Since 1995 the practice of treating different children differently in an estate plan has become more and more popular. Further, the evidence is clear that this practice has put a lot of stress on a lot of surviving familial relationships. As a matter of fact, I have seen instances where family members have sworn to never speak to each other as a result of a dispute regarding an estate. It isn’t hard to understand that a lot of feelings, and a lifetime of family dynamics can be tied up in these final wishes. While the rest of the world looks at these as financial transactions, they can be very personal evidence to a perceived prejudice for or against another beneficiary. Is Mom’s estate plan the final proof that she loved little Timmy more than she loved you? Maybe, but probably not. My experience has been that it is far more likely that Mom knows her kids better than anyone else on the planet knows her kids, so she knows that little Timmy is going to need more financial help than you are.
Really, that’s the rub. There […]