Love means doing the right thing

I see situations where a person leaves money in their will to a child or grandchild with the qualification that they “do the right thing” and make gifts to other family members as they deem fair and equitable.

First of all, I question how enforceable such a directive is (can a grandchild, for instance, actually go to court to force payment to them? – I doubt they will be successful). But secondly, why pass along the responsibility of deciding what is fair and equitable to another person? In most cases that person will feel very conflicted, trying to carry out your wishes in terms of gauging what is fair and equitable, while at the same time acting on their own sense of doing the right thing in light of their relationship to these other family members, not to mention their own self interest of retaining as much money as possible. It becomes very messy.

Whether a person “deserves” an inheritance is a far cry from whether they are legally “entitled to” an inheritance. The distinction between the two in terms of enforceability is a profound one and a decision best left to the testator (that is, the person who is making his or her will). Unless the will makes it clear that a particular person is to receive an inheritance, there is no legal entitlement to an inheritance and any directive short of that will only lead to ambiguity and costly litigation.  

You can protect your family and appoint a guardian and trustee for your minor children very easily by doing a simple will. All it takes is a phone call or text to Serra Law Group at (908) 534-1985. 

Our on-line platform called Smart Law eliminates the hassle of schlepping into an attorney's office like in the old days and streamlines the intake process, so you never have to leave your home. And it can all be done in the palm of your hand on your phone at a fraction of the cost of a traditional law firm. The gap between knowing and doing has never been slimmer!

Act now and feel good you did something extremely important for the protection of your family. 

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