BROADCASTS.com

b"As most of you know, the much-loved singer, songwriter Prince died recently of unnatural causes at the age of 58. He was a musical innovator best known for his eclectic work, flamboyant stage presence, extravagant dress and makeup, and wide vocal range. Prince sold over 100 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling artists of all time.
But with the mourning over his death barely over, bickering has already begun over Prince\\u2019s estimated $200-300 million estate and $500 million back-catalogue. Prince died with no known will \\u2014 so his sister, Tyka Nelson, and five remaining half-siblings will likely inherit his fortune under Minnesota state law. But whatever the final result, squabbling over the millions promises to be a drawn-out process.
BBC ran an article written by Kate Ashford, which spells out a lot of the ramifications of contesting a will and other aspects of wealth transfer after death; so, as I always like to do, we take a recent celebrity\\u2019s death to educate you about your money.
Here\\u2019s a true story: A mother and father own a farm and have four children. Only one of the children, let\\u2019s call him Michael, works on this farm. He does so for 40 years for little pay, keeping it afloat, while the other three children have successful careers elsewhere. In their estate documents, the parents stated that when they die, the family farm should go to Michael and the family home should go to the other three siblings.
Unfortunately, the parents also added a paragraph that said, \\u201cThese are the arrangements to be carried out unless the children vote to change it.\\u201d Now, after the parents\\u2019 death, the other three siblings outvoted Michael and are each suing for a quarter of the value of the entire farm. If they win, the farm will be liquidated, leaving Michael with only a quarter of the value of the operation at age 60.
This is the situation facing a financial planner in the State of Virginia who says: \\u201cThere is no question what the parents\\u2019 intentions were, but the siblings are still taking Michael to court. They no longer speak to each other. They all think Michael is being greedy. They will lose the court battle but the family may never heal.\\u201d
Contesting a will is a gut-wrenching process and could potentially be avoided if more families talked about estate planning in advance. Despite the many obvious benefits of estate planning, three-quarters of all wealthy families in the U.S. don\\u2019t discuss money and inheritance ahead of time, in ways that avoid misunderstandings and unintended consequences after they\\u2019re gone.
There\\u2019s usually also a lot of animosity that develops over the years and makes wills that much more contentious. The war extends beyond the will into settling decades of simmering tensions.
So if you\\u2019re in a situation where you\\u2019re faced with contesting a will, make sure you have good reasons and a fair amount of stamina because disputing a will isn\\u2019t easy.
Here\\u2019s what you should know:
What it will take: You\\u2019ll need to provide an acceptable legal argument for invalidating the will. You\\u2019ll also need the resources to pay a lawyer who specializes in estate litigation \\u2014which can cost tens of thousands\\u2014and the confidence to go up against your family if circumstances warrant it. So given how disputing a will can be a difficult, emotional, and expensive process, make sure you know what you\\u2019re getting into ahead of time.
Depending on where you live, you may also need to have \\u201cstanding\\u201d to contest a will. To have standing, you\\u2019d need to have been in-line to inherit even if there had been no will. When there's no estate document, the rules of intestacy apply, which are the state or country laws that apply to the transfer of an estate after a death. Typical intestacy rules might pass property to a spouse first, children second, parents third, and so on,"