Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in California

My mom's attorney advised her against leaving $1 to one of my siblings (obviously, she's making a statement to that sibling). The attorney said that the sibling will never cash the check, thus keeping the estate "open" and that, somehow, that will cause problems for the rest of us. I know people do this $1 thing all the time, so I'm baffled by the attorney's advice.

First, how would the check never being cashed actually impact the rest of us?

Second, why not just specify that the check must be cashed within X days of issue or it's void? Wouldn't that solve that problem?

Or what about leaving the dollar in the form of a $1 bill? My mom is going to leave a handwritten letter to my sibling explaining WHY she did the $1 thing; if the dollar bill is in the same SEALED envelope as the letter, and the envelope is handed to my sibling at the time the will is read, she then has taken possession of the dollar--so case closed, right?

Note that my mom has both a will and a revocable trust. Also, my mom's attorney is well known and highly respected, and has many accolades from various legal associations; I'm not questioning his knowledge of the law, I just don't GET why he said what he did. I'd like to figure out a way to accomplish what my mom wants without running into problems later.

Thanks for the opportunity to ask questions like these and have them answered by knowledgeable people. It's very much appreciated!


Asked on 3/19/10, 8:43 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
George Shers Law Offices of Georges H. Shers

Thank you for appreciating us.

While even the best legal mind can make a mistake, you mother's attorney has not. The leaving of $1 or any other token amount is to show that the person preparing the Will thought about them and decided to leave them only such a small amount. You can just mention the person in the body of the Will and state some reasons they are not getting anything [you do not even have to be right as to the reasons]. Your own idea about putting an expire date on the check is good but what if the administrator thinks everything wil be resolved in a year so puts 14 months on the check and things drag out so it takes two years to resolve; can that sibling now sue the estate for negligently dragging out the process? Why have the administrator spend the time doing what you suggest and bill for that time?

How does what the attorney suggests go contrary to the basic purpose of your mother's? It is better to make things as simple as possible and giving the $1 makes things a little harder.

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Answered on 3/25/10, 11:15 am


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