in the Philippines, as I have a small pension.”
Vidal, in his later years, was in a seriously declined physical and mental state, and according to members of his family, was suffering from dementia and other maladies with symptoms that included confusion and hallucinations.
The Maharajah of Faridkot – Can You Trust Your Trustees?
The Maharajah of Faridkot was depressed after the death of his only son. When he died a short time after, his daughters, the princesses, were stunned to learn that a will their father had ostensibly signed left them virtually nothing. The princesses had expected that the Maharajah would leave them his lands, forts, palaces, jewelry, precious stones, classic cars, and other assets worth several billion US dollars.
All of the assets of the Maharajah were apparently left to a group of trustees, with the eldest daughter of the Maharajah, the child who would have been thought to receive the largest portion of his estate, receiving nothing under the trust. Similarly, each of the Maharajah's widow and surviving mother received nothing under the trust arrangements. The youngest princesses, under the trusts, received a monthly allowance of US$20 and US$18, respectively.
Finally, after lengthy litigation, and by then in their 80s, the Maharajah's daughters succeeded in showing that the will had been forged by their father's “trusted” aides, who named themselves, together with the Maharajah's lawyers, officials, and other servants, as “trustees” of the Maharajah's estate, taking control of his wealth. In the 20 years of litigation, one of the princesses had already died, and part of the Maharajah's estate had been squandered by his self-appointed trustees who threatened to continue the case, claiming that the will putting them in control of the Maharajah's wealth was valid.
These are a few true stories among, sadly, many reported in the press on a regular basis.
In the case of Jessica Schrader, pressured into changing her will at the age of 96, a house worth less than US$500,000 was what destroyed her family and her last years. Is it not a reality that those with less to pass on to the next generation have, in today's world, an even greater responsibility to ensure that what they do is not destructive? A small family business, a nest egg of savings, a piece of jewelry… all can have enormous importance to the younger generation and apart from value can carry with them perceived “messages” from the older generation that, if not sensitively handled, can leave generations of unhappiness. But did Jessica Schrader do anything wrong, leaving her home to her two sons in equal shares under her will? How could she have avoided coming under pressure to change things at a late stage in her life? Would an earlier transfer of the house to her sons, with Jessica keeping the right to live in it for her lifetime, have been safer?
The Chadhas had billions; the Schraders a few hundred thousand in the value of their mother's house. In both cases, families and relationships destroyed. For every family dispute we read about, many, many more take place outside the press. And how many situations have arisen where assets have been stolen, diverted, misplaced, or lost and no one in the family ever even found out?
If one child is a caregiver to an elderly parent and the other is not, is the caregiver entitled to a greater share of the inheritance? Are they able to abuse a position of trust and influence their parent into destroying family relationships, as occurred when Nick Schrader unlawfully influenced his mother to change her will?
The Nina Wang case fascinated Hong Kong and the world as it unfolded over the years. The press reported the kidnappings of Teddy Wang, the second of which was even rumored to have been engineered by Nina herself. Nina's alleged extra-marital affair, which had resulted in Teddy excluding her from benefitting under his will, also became a topic of gossip. But stripping away the dramatic elements of the story leaves a number of clear questions. What did Teddy Wang ultimately want in terms of where the family business he owned, which had been started by his father, would go in the event of his death? Were there steps Teddy, or perhaps better, his own father, could have taken to keep the business away from Nina if that was their intention?
Nina ended up being a good steward of the business after Teddy's death. Despite her eccentricity, the value of the business grew to over US$4 billion by the time she passed away. But could she have also considered succession plans that would have made it less of a risk that her Fung Shui master and companion would get it all by forging her signature on a will purporting to leave everything to him? As it turned out, even lavish gifts to her young lover were not enough to stop him taking illegal actions in an attempt to get it all.
Vincent Astor's father, John Jacob Astor, died in the sinking of the Titanic. Brooke Astor married Vincent, the heir of one of the wealthiest families in the world, in a time of reported financial distress after the death of her second husband. Vincent Astor was reported to be a difficult individual and husband and, perhaps fortunately for Brooke Astor, died only six years after their marriage, leaving her most of his wealth.
Anthony (Tony) Marshall, Brooke Astor's son from her first marriage, was reported to have had a troubled relationship with his mother, at least in part deriving from the abusive relationship of Brooke Astor with Tony Marshall's natural father. Marshall, who took the name of Brooke's second husband, also had a reportedly terrible relationship with Vincent Astor.
When Vincent Astor died in 1959, he left Brooke Astor US$120 million, half to her and half to a foundation she was to run. An enormous sum in 1959, Brooke Astor became one of New York's top socialites and philanthropists. As she aged, Brooke Astor was reported to be distant from her son, whom she referred to as “not an Astor,” largely excluding him from participation in her philanthropic work and otherwise. While Tony was involved in managing a portion of his mother's money, Brooke planned to give most of her own money to charity rather than to him.
Over the years, and prior to her death at 105, Brooke Astor became more and more dependent on the care of her son and of others. Diagnosed with Alzheimer's, Brooke Astor's friends and several members of her family were concerned at what they viewed as “elder abuse” taking place at the hands of Tony. One of Tony's own children, Philip Marshall, initiated legal proceedings to have Tony Marshall removed as his grandmother's guardian. In the proceedings that followed, both of Tony Marshall's sons testified against him. The proceedings led not only to Tony's removal as guardian, but eventually to the filing of criminal charges against him and a lawyer involved, and their conviction and jailing.
Over her lifetime, Brooke Astor had executed more than 30 wills and amendments, and as the courts ultimately found, at least some of these were executed when Brooke Astor no longer had the mental capacity to understand her actions. Will amendments favoring Tony Marshall were made, according to Brooke Astor's own lawyer, at least in part on the instructions of Tony himself. Evidently, Tony Marshall was constantly working on his mother and her lawyer to make amendments in his favor.
Tony Marshall was ultimately convicted of having taken advantage of his mother who, suffering dementia, became more and more dependent on him. Among others, Tony Marshall was alleged to have encouraged Brooke Astor to change her will in his favor and, during her lifetime, to have helped himself to his mother's art, jewelry, and money.
Tony Marshall did manage to get himself released from prison for medical reasons after only two months of incarceration, but at the age of 89, it is hard not to conclude that wealth destroyed Tony Marshall and his relationships with his mother and his two natural children. But, in this saga, was Tony Marshall the only “bad guy?” Are there lessons here for all families, particularly in a time of changing demographics, and the reality that we are all living much longer than was the case in the past? What of the increasing frequency of cases of dementia and related problems facing the elderly?
I can envision conversations between Brooke Astor and her only son in the years leading up to her death being more about money and what Tony would ultimately get than about anything else. I believe that there are too many families where aging parents spend more time than they should worrying
