Of Memorabilia and Men

Willie DeLuca was the manager of famed Cincinnati restaurant, Sorrentos Pizzeria. He was famous for having a heart of gold, appearing on David Letterman to balance stuff on his nose, and collecting sports and entertainment memorabilia (including hair from JFK and Paul McCartney) that he valued at $1 million. DeLuca died in 2006 and left his entire estate in a testamentary trust to his only child, Enrico. The trust funds and memorabilia were distributed to Enrico when he turned 21 several years ago. Enrico is now suing his uncle, Art DeLuca, for allegedly taking some of the memorabilia that was left to him by his father. The uncle had posted some of the items for sale on Facebook recently.

Several small points:

1. I never prepare testamentary trusts for my clients because they are a public record. A living trust is private and more flexible.

2. I also never advise my clients to have a trust distribute all of its assets when the child turns 21 - that age is too young for most children to manage the inheritance responsibly.

3. Enrico might have a statute of limitations problem with proving his claim because Willie died 10+ years ago and Enrico is only now filing suit.

4. Posting items for sale on Facebook which are a public record as belonging to Willie’s estate and trust is not advisable.

5. Hair snippets from JFK and Paul McCartney? How does one acquire those? Regardless, I would not give a nickel for them.

Photo Credit:   Cincinnati Enquirer/File Photo
License:  Fair Use/Education

Dead Actors Society

The children and widow of Robin Williams are continuing to fight over his estate.  His widow is seeking items left in the house even though Mr. Williams' will left his jewelry, clothing, memorabilia, and awards to his children.  The list of 300 disputed items reportedly includes underwear, slipper, and t shirts.  More importantly, the widow will receive in trust an undetermined amount of money to care for the house he left her.  Of course, the parties cannot agree on this amount.

Several points:

1.  Williams and his attorney should have determined a specific amount for the upkeep of the house and erred on the high side.  Vagueness in a will/trust only leads to disputes.

2.  Fighting over underwear etc. proves that some people want to fight simply because the probate process is their last chance to fight with their siblings or step-parent.

3.  Even though the parties both claim the underwear, rumor has it that they left the Patch Adams memorabilia at the curb for the garbageman.