To many, the rich and famous may seem like they live in another reality and are subject to different rules than the rest of society. However, everybody in Maryland knows that even celebrities will unfortunately face death, which means even the rich and famous should be thinking about estate planning strategies. This is particularly important when a celebrity, or any other person for that matter, has minor children. Movie star Paul Walker realized this, which is why he included a guardianship clause in his will.
Walker expressed his wishes to have his mother take guardianship of his 15-year-old daughter rather than his ex-wife. This erupted into conflict and a legal dispute between Walker’s mother and the late actor’s former wife. The mother was attempting to challenge the grandmother’s legal guardianship through the litigation process. However, this may be avoided as a result of recent developments in the situation.
The grandmother has recently agreed to stop her efforts to become the legal guardian of the young teenager. However, her promise to stop pursuing guardianship rests on the mother’s ability to keep her promise to successfully complete a rehabilitation program for her alcoholism. The late movie star took custody of their daughter three years ago as a result of the mother’s drinking problems.
This case illustrates how important it is to consider guardianship of minor children when it comes to estate planning in Maryland or any other state. If Walker had neglected to take action in planning for guardianship of his daughter, it is possible the wife would have been able to obtain guardianship without having to attend rehabilitation. This could have become a dangerous situation for Walker’s daughter.
Source: sfexaminer.com, “Paul Walker’s mother pledges to drop guardianship bid for star’s daughter if mother seeks rehab“, , March 31, 2014
