People often procrastinate when it comes to estate planning and one of the primary reasons for this is because they simply feel as though they are not going to die any time soon.
It is good to think positive, and the average life expectancy in the United States is 78 years so you may well live a long and robust life. However, there are no guarantees and when you keep putting it off you are putting your family members in a precarious situation.
A case involving a high-profile individual that demonstrates the perils of procrastination can be found when you look at the estate of Swedish author of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, Stieg Larsson. He died unexpectedly of a heart attack when he was just 50 years old back in 2004. Larsson had no type of estate plan in place.
His girlfriend of 32 years, who lived with him, contended that she was his rightful heir, at least in part, but his father and brother disagreed. A court battle ensued and, in the end, Larsson’s blood relatives wound up inheriting his fortune, which was estimated to be valued at somewhere in the vicinity of $40 million.
When you look at this situation you can see what can happen when you fail to take action to provide for those that you love. If you are ready to stop procrastinating, simply pick up the phone and arrange for a consultation with a good Oklahoma City estate planning lawyer.
Larry Parman
Author, President and Founding Attorney
Parman & Easterday
Since founding Parman & Easterday in 1985, Larry has led over 1,000 free, community-service education programs and helped more than 10,000 Oklahoma families go from putting off their estate plan to getting it done. His goal for every client is the same: to become the person their family calls "the one who took care of everything."
Larry is the author of three books: The Straight Shooter's Guide to Estate Planning; Estate Planning Basics; and Guiding Those Left Behind in Oklahoma. He served as Oklahoma's Secretary of State and Secretary of Commerce, and his firm is the only member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys in the state.
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