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A Disinherited Son’s $500,000 Surprise
How an IRA Foiled a Father’s Final Hostile Gesture
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My friend Dave’s dad was an asshole.
He was a bad father and a bad husband. The only thing he was good at was making money. Although he wasn’t wealthy when Dave was growing up, Dad ended up being worth 10 million.
In the final years of his life, he made it clear to his adult kids that they weren’t inheriting a penny.
Still, even though he was an asshole, Dave and his sisters, now in their 60s, kind of hoped that he might leave them even a small portion of that 10 million.
They couldn’t help but think that maybe blood would prove to be thicker than water. Or that he might leave them a little money to say “Sorry!” for how nasty and neglectful he’d been when they were kids.
Then he drew up a will. By this time, Dad was 90 years old and divorced. They were told that his estate plan left his entire pile in a complicated trust arrangement that benefited everybody but them.
What had they done to merit being disinherited like this?
Not a thing.
