On Wed 18 Jun 2008 01:28:52a, Janet Baraclough told us...

> The message >
> from sf <.> contains these words:
>
>> On Tue, 17 Jun 2008 22:24:57 GMT, Wayne Boatwright
>> > wrote:
>
>> >Fortunately,, we have taken care of all that. We had wills drafted
>> >shortly after we met and have kept them updated. Before David was to
>> >have his quadruple bypass surgery, we made sure that we both had all
>> >the other documents in good order.
>
>> DAMN, you're good! I'm x0 and still don't have a will. Of course,
>> the way the law would distribute my property is the way I'd do it
>> anyway... so I'm in no hurry to enrich some attorney with the prospect
>> of my death.
>
> YMMV, but here, NOT leaving a will is a good way to enrich lawyers.
> Wherever there is protective inheritance law, there is a lawyer who
> knows a way to cut the cake into smaller slices for inheritors and a
> big one for himself.
>
> We have protected inheritance here, and before we made wills I thought
> as you do. I was wrong. Legal terminology is just one reason why it's
> still hugely important to leave a properly constructed will. Not leaving
> a will leaves the estate wide open to valid claims I might not have
> anticipated by people I haven't even met yet and wouldn't wish to
> support . If such a challenge occurs, the people I intended the
> money/property for A) might get less or B) might have to spend a lot of
> my money on lawyers to fight off the other claimants and C) might have
> to raise the legal fees of dispute, by selling the property I want them
> to have.
>
> Janet.. (Scotland)
>
>
>

That is absolutely true in the US as well. We are not about to give up a
penny to an "outsider" if we don't have to.


--
Wayne Boatwright
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Wednesday, 06(VI)/18(XVIII)/08(MMVIII)
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Cats must lick the cheese from the
grater when the human's back is turned.
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