Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 8438 GoodLifeFamilyMag.com JULY | AUGUST 2016 Oh, Controversy! I Hate U. Prince’s recent death has caused many of us to reflect upon his fantastic music and mystifying personality. Like many great artists before him, Prince pushed the envelope, both personally and musically, all the while creating music and art that was ahead of its time. He also personified the American Dream. He didn’t have much growing up, other than a remarkable musical capability. He used his unique talents to build what is an estimated $300 million estate. Then he died, abruptly and all too soon, without children and without a will. One of my colleagues said, “If you want to see a multimillion dollar estate disappear, watch this case.” I agree with him entirely, but I also have to add: “Or if you want to see a family permanently scarred and torn apart.” At the time of this writing, the family is headed to probate court in Minnesota, and according to recent news reports, they’re already arguing over the estate. “I Hate U” indeed. How do you divide up that unbelievable guitar collection? Rights to the music? Did he want his family to have it all? What about all of his (reportedly) unreleased work? I don’t think Prince was thinking about these things when he wrote “Controversy.” If no estate planning took place, the IRS will get about 40% of the estate, which is about $120 million. Wow. That should be enough to buy every member of Congress a “Little Red Corvette.” I don’t think that’s what this fabulous artist had in mind. While nobody knows the exact figure, some estimates say that 55% of American adults do not have a will or any type of estate plan in place. Most Americans would make the valid point that their estate isn’t going to be worth anything close to Prince’s, and they’re correct. But there are other valid reasons for making sure we have an estate plan. Here are two: 1Having an estate plan is not JUST about transferring money and belongings nor saving on taxes. Most of us have some family. Any legal argument over our estate will permanently damage relationships. That is simply the unfortunate byproduct of litigation, and I have yet to meet a client who wanted to incite division within the family. When done properly, our estate plan expresses our financial and personal wishes to those we leave behind, even if we don’t have much money to distribute. by Colin Smith | Contributor "...But life is just a party and parties weren't meant to last." -1999, Prince