$20 Million Estate

This past Friday a court in London England upheld the will of a wealthy 88 year old woman that left her whole estate, about $20 million, to the owners of a Chinese Restaurant. Five nephews and nieces argued unsuccessfully that their aunt was not of a sound mind when the will was revised in 1994, eleven years before her death.

Even prior to the death of the woman’s husband, the woman, Goldie Bechal, had been friends with the restaurant owners. Since the death of Goldie’s husband the friendship with the couple deepened. She often visited their home and the Mans hers. They invited her to join them on their vacations and celebrated her birthday in their restaurant.

These nephews and nieces were essentially arguing that their aunt was not of a sound mind because she left the estate to the Mans. The argument rests upon the assumption that leaving the estate to someone who was not a blood relative, “outside the family”, was an irrational act, and thereby she had to not have been in her right mind. And if she was not in her right mind then the will was invalid and if it was invalid the five would receive $4 million each.

I am pleased by the Court’s thinking. The Mans were able to tell stories of repeated visits in each others homes, birthday celebrations enjoyed together, of Goldie being there for anniversary celebrations and repeatedly taking vacations with the Mans. The five could not demonstrate much, if any, ongoing connection with Goldie.

The crux of the case comes down to definition of family. Irrespective of how often they visited their aunt, or whether they could recall her birth date in court, the five genetic interlopers held that because they shared her genes that they should receive her money. The arguments of these vultures are shallow and their actions driven not by concern for Goldie but by greed.

The Court dismissed such a shallow definition of family by noting that even though the Mans did not share any genetic material with Goldie, they functioned and supported each other as a family.

The Court has reminded us that family is not about common genetics, it is about support and love for each other. The judge has given a wise ruling. Kudos to the Court.