28 Nov Chadwick Boseman Estate and What It Means To Not Have a Will
Probates made news recently, because Chadwick Boseman’s wife filed a probate proceeding. And he didn’t have a will. Some of the headlines feed into the common misconception that it was the lack of a will that caused the probate. Even though it hasn’t been open for long, we can already learn from the Chadwick Boseman Estate.
Probates don’t happen because someone didn’t have a will. That’s not how it works. The converse is a common misconception that causes a ton of people to leave a mess. The wrong belief that having a will avoids probate.
When you die, you’ll leave two types of assets. One type are assets that move automatically, like life insurance, assets owned in trust, and assets you own with other people in certain ways. In some way, the ownership documents with the particular asset says what happens when the owner dies. The other type are assets that are stuck. They don’t say what happens.
When a particular amount of assets or type of assets are “stuck”, the court has to put an executor (or a personal representative) in place who has the responsibility of getting those stuck things where they need to go. It’s not the will that determines whether there’s a probate rather your assets that do.
So, I have a-nother bonus episode. This time talking about what we know about the Chadwick Boseman estate and what it means to not have a will.
Listen here. Find An Organized (after)Life Podcast on your favorite provider.
Here’s the thing. News about celebrity estates are helpful to talk about because they have the same issues and obstacles and to-dos as the rest of us. Coming in December, I’ll talk about more celebrity estates and what they can teach the rest of us about leaving a manageable to-do list.
In the meantime, find out more about wills and probates.
–S1 Ep 8: Oh That’s What a Will Does!
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