Mavis Gragg

Photo by Chris Facey

Have you pondered your mortality yet? Have you accepted that, yes, you will kick the bucket one day? No rush, though! Hopefully not for another hundred years! But hey, everything has an end, right? Estate attorney Mavis Gragg says, "You absolutely need a Will!" That way, your loved ones can inherit your prized ceramic cat collection, your state fair art, those pesky unpaid traffic tickets, and everything else you want to pass on. We just had to ask Mavis a few more questions about this lively topic!

If someone leaves their fortune to a pet, how does that actually work legally?

Well, pets are property too. So, you can’t leave assets to an asset. You can, however, do a pet trust. I’ve never done one, but I recently met an attorney while swimming and we had a fascinating conversation about a pet trust case she was litigating. Right there in the pool! First, you should know a trust is a relationship between three parties- settlor, trustee (fiduciary), and beneficiary. In a pet trust, the pet is treated like a beneficiary but it should be human. Anyway, the trustee has to manage the assets of the trust in a way that supports the care of the pet. I think the pet is even part of the trust. LOL! The attorney shared that the blood relatives of the decedent (legal term for deceased person) in her case were suing the trustee arguing that  the cat was being replaced so that the trustee could continue taking care of it and living in the lovely mansion of the decedent.

You could also do a less formal approach that’s riskier. You could leave assets to a trusted person with the condition that they take care of the pet, but legally those assets belong to the caregiver. So, you really need to trust them.

What’s the most bizarre estate plan you’ve ever encountered?

I can’t think of any bizarre ones. However, I have seen plenty of plans that are ill-conceived. Most people think of estate plans as wills, powers of attorney, medical directives, and trusts. Estate plans are also simply relying on the state laws to decide or trying to save money with DIY estate plans and transferring assets to would be heirs before dying.  Most people rely on state laws including people with lots of wealth or for whom a personalized plan could have saved a lot of money and maybe even their lives. Prince comes to mind. The most precious part of his estate to me is likely his art. Since he had what I call the Government Plan (state laws), his art/intellectual property has to be used to pay all sorts of expenses, including never released material. I think that’s sad but I also know Prince was purposeful in that decision. 

I had a daughter approach me while her mother was dying. She wanted me to review a will her mother prepared using literally a will-in-a-box. That stunned me even though I knew those existed. The other amazing thing was that the will did not effectively dispose of any assets. That part of the document was completely blank. When I explained to the daughter the issue, she said “Mom told me to fill it out when she died.” She went on to share that her sister was a drug addict and would not be included IF she wasn’t clean when her mother died. Oof! I didn’t take the matter. 

Another ill conceived plan involved a woman transferring all of her real estate to her kids and retaining lifetime rights for herself. She soon went into long term care for dementia and two of her three kids died before her. The result of this plan was ownership went from 1 to 3 to 8, including minor children and spouses of the lady’s deceased kids.

Can a ghost legally contest a will?

OOOH yeah!!!! Sike. 

What happens if a person dies without a will but has a social media presence? Who gets control?

There is a distinction between a social media presence and digital assets. Social media platforms’ policies dictate how the accounts are handled when someone dies. Some have the option to appoint a “legacy contact” who will have authority to close the account down if the owner dies. Others’ policies typically require proof of death, but can even require court authority.  Digital assets such as domain names, crypto, virtual goods, etc. are non-tangible, personal property, i.e. non-real estate that you can’t touch like a car or album collection. Like other assets, when a person dies without a will, they have the government plan. State laws dictate what happens and who gets control. The policies of the vendors also matter and often define what the person “owns” and what belongs to the vendor.

Are there any legal loopholes that people use to avoid paying estate taxes?

A friend of mine, a brilliant CPA, once shared that she became a CPA after reading the Internal Revenue Code. I love my nerdy friends! She said it’s the guide for growing and maintaining wealth, which I think is a brilliant perspective. As of 2024, wealthy individuals owning less than $12.92 million (or $25.84 million for married couples) do not have to pay estate taxes. Whether there is an estate tax liability for a decedent’s estate is based on the value of what the person owned at the time of their death. If you transfer your assets to a trust, like many wealth people, and keep the amount you personally own below the threshold, that’s a great “loophole”. This could have been a smart move for Prince and others.

There are other strategies as well. If your friend suddenly gifts you a brand-new Rolls Royce, it might be part of their estate tax avoidance strategy. There are annual and lifetime limits on gift taxes. You can also maximize contributions to 529 education plans and other accounts.

What’s the weirdest request you’ve seen in a will?

One lady wanted to preserve her… never mind. Lots of people try to control from the grave. The law only allows that to a point. People also believe their kids will get along. They often don’t! Don’t give equally. Give lovingly!

Lights on or off?

On!

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Durham, North Carolina.