Estate Planning

The Octomom - I bet she hasn't done proper estate planning

By Gregory Herman-Giddens

The other day I started thinking about Nadya Suleman (the Octomom), the California single mother of 14 who has been in the news so much lately.  A professional hazard, I guess, but I wondered - has she done any estate planning? 

Does she have a Will?  If so, has she named a guardian or guardians for her 14 children (who would want that job!)?  Does she have a trust set up for the kids?  Who's the trustee?

Does she have a general and durable power of attorney in case she becomes incapacitated?

Does she have any (or enough) life insurance to at least partially provide for her children in the event of her death?

My guess is that she doesn't have any of these things.  Given her cavalier attitude about bringing more children into the world than she can possibly rear or support on her own, I bet she just assumes it will all work out.  If the State of California gets involved, which it certainly will if she hasn't done proper estate planning, the kids will most likely end up in custody of the State, placed in separate foster homes, receiving State support.

Octomom - if you care about your kids - go see an estate planning lawyer!

Full post as published by North Carolina Estate Planning Blog on April 02, 2009 (boomark / email).