A will (see “Advantages of a Will”) drafted under California law cannot violate public policy. For example, a San Diego probate court (see “Disadvantages of San Diego Probate”) will not enforce a clause that dictates the commission of a crime or specifies that the beneficiary must divorce a named spouse before a gift from the will is delivered.

But in a textbook lesson in how to write a will, Bruce Ivins, the man who committed suicide after becoming the primary suspect in the anthrax mailings which killed 5 people in 2001, created a will that skirts those public policy concerns. Ivans knew that his wife stoutly opposed abortion – she served as president of Frederick County’s Right to Life movement – and also that she might not honor his request that his remains be cremated. So he proposed that “If my remains are not cremated and my ashes are not scattered or spread on the ground, I give to Planned Parenthood of Maryland” a $50,000 gift from the estate. He knew that his wife would oppose the gift and would therefore be coerced into honoring his request.

Apparently, his threatened gift has spurred the family to action. His cremated remains are stored at a funeral home while Maryland probate lawyers seek advice from the probate court on how to provide detailed proof to the probate court (as directed under his will) that the remains were cremated and scattered. A California probate court (”What is California Probate?”) would likely follow the result, which gives will drafters added incentive to create alternative dispositions to enforce testamentary intent. Read more here.

Filed under: Probate, Probate Litigation, Will Contests, Wills, Wills and Trusts