In most states, including Texas, failure to draft a will, or failure to draft a valid will, leads to an estate passing to a decedent’s relatives under the Texas intestacy statutes. This means that if you die without a valid will, some of your loved ones may not be able to inherit anything. For unmarried partners, without a will, they are most likely unable to inherit anything from their unmarried decedents.
In 2004, famous Swedish journalist and crime writer, Stieg Larsson, passed away. After his death, his girlfriend and his surviving family members were entrenched in a probate nightmare. Currently, his estate keeps earning money from the posthumous sales of his books. Because the famous author died without a valid will, his girlfriend of 32 years is not entitled to any of his estate. Instead, his entire estate passed to his surviving brother and father under Sweden’s intestacy laws.
Famous for his “Millennium Series” of suspense novels, the famous Swedish author, Stieg Larsson, died of a heart attack at the young age of 50 after making his way up multiple flights of stairs to his office. His books were bestsellers, and they sold millions of copies internationally. Winner of almost a dozen writing awards, USA Today made him their “Author of the Year” posthumously in 2010. Stieg Larsson became the first author to hit the 1 million e-book sales mark on Amazon.com. At the time of his death, experts estimated his net worth at $25 million.
Stephen A. Mendel, Estate Planning Attorney
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