Celebrity Estate Lessons - Ernie Banks

Ah, summer. A great time to catch a ball game. You probably think those players on the field have everything all figured out, but that's not always the case. When Chicago Cubs' player Ernie Banks died in 2015, his estranged wife didn't think he had a Will. She was certainly surprised when Ernie's long time caregiver Regina Rice provided one. His wife was far more surprised that the will left his entire estate to Rice!

The two battled in court under claims that Ernie had decreased mental capacity when the Will was written and that Rice had forced him to sign the paperwork. A letter from Banks to his wife would seem to contradict this claim.

It looks like this estate is still being contested and there is no way to know for sure when it will be complete.

It's important when estate planning is done that a person's mental capacity is well documented. There are definitely ways to do this and we at Harrison Estate Law can definitely help you out with that!