I think we all find it somewhat fascinating that celebrities who appear to have all the resources for the best legal advice money can buy make so many missteps with their estate plans. This article, provided by the ABA back in June of 2025 and written by several contributing authors including Kristen Curatolo, Jay J. Scharf, Shifra Herzberg, Shaina Kamen, Erica Howard-Potter, Mikhail E. Lezhnev, and Jessica Galligan Goldsmith, provides insight into some of those missteps. The following is Part One of two Parts.
“Summary
- Complications arose following Anne Heche’s death caused by the absence of a will or other estate planning documents. She did not have an estate plan in place specifying a fiduciary of her estate or how her assets were to be distributed.
- When Lisa Marie Presley died, her daughter Riley was the sole trustee of Lisa Marie’s revocable trust, wielding full control over Elvis’s home, Graceland, including its 13-acre original grounds, Elvis’s personal effects, and Elvis’s legacy. At the time of Lisa Marie’s death, the Elvis brand brought in more than $100 million per year.
- Tupac Shakur was tragically killed in a drive-by shooting in 1996, spurring more than two decades of legal battles over his estate.
- Ivana Trump’s estate, worth tens of millions of dollars, was distributed through her will, but relying solely on a will to pass an estate as large and well-known as Ivana’s could result in significant publicity for the decedent and beneficiaries. This risk could be mitigated through the use of more advanced estate planning techniques, including revocable trusts.
Like many ordinary individuals, celebrities often fail to update outdated estate plans or ignore estate planning altogether. Even when a celebrity has done careful estate planning and has well-drafted documents, changes in family circumstances or in the tax laws can create unexpected results. When estate planning misfires occur, grieving family members can end up fighting with each other and with taxing authorities. The estate plans discussed in this article offer useful lessons to estate planners and laypersons alike.
Estate of Tupac Shakur: No Love from His Daddy
Background
Tupac Shakur, the iconic rapper, songwriter, and activist, was tragically killed in a drive-by shooting in 1996, spurring more than two decades of legal battles over his estate.
Estate Plan
Shakur died intestate. He was not married and did not have any children. Under California law, Shakur’s parents, Afeni Shakur and William “Billy” Garland, were presumed to share his estate equally. Because Garland was not married to Shakur’s mother and was largely absent in Shakur’s life, however, Afeni disputed Garland’s claim to half of Shakur’s estate. California law requires a father who is not married to the child’s mother to have a substantial relationship with the child and provide monetary support in order to inherit from the child.
Result
Throughout his musical career, Shakur documented his lack of relationship with Garland. His hit “Dear Mama” included lyrics like “No love from my daddy, ’cause the coward wasn’t there/I was lookin’ for a father, he was gone.” During the proceedings following Shakur’s death, Garland’s contributions to Shakur’s support were reportedly found to include $820, a bag of peanuts, and a ticket to the movie Rollerball. Garland also did not see Shakur for 15 of the 25 years that Shakur was alive. Finding that Garland’s contributions to Shakur’s support and care were minimal, a California judge determined that Garland should not inherit from Shakur.
Lesson
Fortuitously, Shakur died a domiciliary of California, where state law precluded Garland from inheriting. Had Shakur died a domiciliary of a different state, Garland may well have inherited one-half of Shakur’s estate. Intestacy laws differ from state to state, and even a simple will identifying a client’s heirs may avoid years of costly and emotional litigation.
Estate of Paul Newman: The Newman’s Own Exception
Background
Paul Newman was an Academy Award–winning actor, film director, race car driver, entrepreneur, and philanthropist. Newman created the highly successful consumer brand “Newman’s Own” (the Company), which donated 100% of its after-tax profits to charity since its formation.
Estate Plan
Two months before he died in 2008, Newman amended his revocable trust and bequeathed 100% of the Company to the Newman’s Own Foundation (the Foundation). He also gave complete control of the Foundation to nonfamily members. Newman repeatedly expressed his wish that his children direct charitable gifts from the Foundation up to a certain amount each year; however, his estate planning documents were silent on this point. In addition, although Newman clearly wanted the profits of the Company to benefit charitable causes, his estate planning documents did not consider or address the IRS limitations on private foundations that hold operating businesses.
IRC section 4943 imposes an excise tax on a foundation’s excess business holdings. In general, an excise tax of up to 200% of the value of a business will be imposed on any private foundation that receives more than 20% of the voting stock, profits interest, or capital interest in an active trade or business by gift or bequest and does not dispose of its excess ownership interest within five years (or 10 years if an IRS extension is granted). The 20% threshold can be increased to 35% in certain circumstances and is aggregated with certain interests of substantial contributors to the Foundation.
Result
In 2018, just before the 10-year extension on the requirement for the Foundation to dispose of the Company was set to expire, IRC section 4943(g) (Newman’s Own Exception) was enacted, providing an exception to the excess business holding rules in certain cases where 100% of a business is owned by a private foundation. The Newman’s Own Exception applies only to business interests given or bequeathed to a private foundation. In addition, 100% of the net operating income of the business must be distributed each year to the foundation, and the business must operate independently in many respects from the foundation. Had the Newman’s Own Exception not been passed, the Foundation would have been forced to dispose of 80% of its holdings in the Company, and Newman’s intent for the Company’s profits to pass to charity would have failed. In 2022, two of Newman’s daughters sued the Foundation after the Foundation reduced the amount that each daughter could allocate to charitable causes. The Foundation argued that the daughters did not have standing because they did not hold a fiduciary role in the Foundation or in Newman’s estate. The case is still ongoing, and the matters have not been settled.
Lesson
The Newman’s Own Exception is available to individuals who wish to contribute 100% of an operating business to a private foundation and who are willing to allow nonrelated parties to control the business. Strict compliance with IRC section 4943(g) is critical, and care must be taken when planning to contribute assets to a private foundation.
Estate of Anne Heche: An Email Is Not a Holographic Will
Background
Anne Heche was an actress who endured several personal struggles before dying at age 53 in a single-car collision that also destroyed the home into which she crashed. At the time of her death, Anne had two sons: Homer Laffoon, age 20, from her marriage to Coleman Laffoon, and Atlas Tupper, age 13, from her relationship to James Tupper.
Estate Plan
Following Heche’s death, Homer asserted that Heche did not have a will and petitioned to be appointed as the administrator of the estate. Tupper objected, offering an email sent by Heche in 2011 purporting to be her will, which provided, in part, “FYI In case I die tomorrow and anyone asks. My wishes are that all of my assets go to the control of Mr. James Tupper to be used to raise my children and then given to the children . . . and their portion given to each when they are the age of 25. When the last child turns 25 any house or other properties owned may be sold and the money divided equally among our children.”
Result
The court determined that the email did not meet the legal requirements for a validly executed will, or a holographic will, and appointed Homer as the administrator of Heche’s estate. In order for a will to be valid under California law, it must either be in writing and signed by the testator and two adult witnesses or be written and signed by the testator, in which case no witnesses are required. Although a California holographic will does not require witnesses, the material provisions and signature must be solely in the handwriting of the testator. In both instances, the testator must be of sound mind and have the intent to create a will. Because Heche’s email to Tupper did not meet the requirements for a valid will, Heche’s estate passed equally to her two sons under California’s intestacy rules.
Lesson
Heche did not create a proper estate plan. The email was grossly inadequate to constitute even a valid holographic will, resulting in litigation regarding who should be appointed as the administrator of Heche’s estate. In addition, Heche’s entire estate passed outright and quite publicly to her two young children instead of being held in trust for them. The issues surrounding Heche’s estate could easily have been avoided with the use of a pour-over will and revocable trust whose provisions would not have been made public. Ultimately, a relatively simple estate plan that included trusts for the children with one or more adult fiduciaries is all that would have been necessary to rectify most of the problems in Heche’s estate.”
Next week I’ll post Part Two, which covers the estate of Matthew T. Mellon II, as well as the state of Lisa Marie Presley and Ivana Trump. Stay tuned! And in the meantime, if you’re realizing it might be time for you to get your affairs in order, please do not hesitate to call me at 513-399-7526 or visit www.davidlefton.com to learn more.
Source: American Bar Association June 2025, Authors: Kristen Curatolo, Jay J. Scharf, Shifra Herzberg, Shaina Kamen, Erica Howard-Potter, Mikhail E. Lezhnev, and Jessica Galligan Goldsmith