Taxation & Estate Planning

New Illinois Slayer Statute Case

By Joel A. Schoenmeyer

Probate litigation cases aren't often in the news, unless they involve the rich or famous. One exception: when there's a charge of murder. That's what is going on in Will County, with a case involving the estate of a Joliet truck driver named Jeff Neely. WGN has the story, here.

Mr. Neely died of a single stab wound to the heart. He left behind a wife (Enice) and a $50,000 life insurance policy. Does Mrs. Neely get the death benefit? That's the question, which hinges on whether Mrs. Neely stabbed her husband. (Another possibility: Mr. Neely killed himself, possibly by throwing himself on a knife Mrs. Neely was holding.)

Section 2-6 of the Illinois Probate Act states that "[a] person who intentionally and unjustifiably causes the death of another" cannot inherit from the deceased person, and the bar on inheritance extends to non-probate property like insurance.

Full post as published by Death and Taxes Blog on January 25, 2011 (boomark / email).