Bye Bye Love

It was recently reported that Ric Ocasek, lead singer of The Cars, left his estranged wife, Paulina Porizkova, out of his will which he executed several weeks before his death.   The former Sports Illustrated swimsuit model left her much older husband a year before she found him dead in his townhouse when bringing him coffee while he was recovering from surgery.   Specifically, Ocasek’s will provided that he did not want Porizkova to inherit even the elective share because she had abandoned him.  Ocasek’s probate estate consists of $5million of royalties and $100K of personal property.

Several points:

1.  Odds are that Ocasek’s estate consists of more than $5 million because he likely had financial assets and real estate titled in a trust prior to his death.

2.  Even if omitted from a will, spouses may elect to receive a portion of the estate which is usually 1/3.

3.  In Ohio, spouses may only elect against the assets passing through probate.  In NY, spouses may elect to take 1/3 of all assets, including those in a trust and others passing outside probate.

4.  You might think I am cynical, but I find it odd that a woman who left her husband uses the Instagram hashtag #loveneverdies.

Photo Credit:Tammie Arroyo/AFF-USA.COM / MEGA
License: Fair Use/Eductation (from linked article)