Estate law – News, Research and Analysis – The Conversation

Michael Jackson performs in concert circa 1986. Kevin Mazur/WireImage via Getty Images

August 28, 2024

Estate planning lessons from the $600M fight over Michael Jackson’s music catalog

Reid Kress Weisbord, Rutgers University - Newark and Naomi Cahn, University of Virginia

Restrictions that seem reasonable during life can backfire after death.

Fans crowd the gates of Graceland on the 10th Anniversary of Elvis Presley’s death on Aug. 16, 1987. Bill Nation/Sygma via Getty Images

June 5, 2024

Could Elvis’ Graceland hold a key to bridging America’s cultural divide?

Michael T. Bertrand, Tennessee State University

The singer’s home reflects the rags-to-riches trajectory that epitomizes the American Dream. Yet Presley and his estate were seen as not quite refined enough to reflect true upward mobility.

Paper copies of wills haven’t gone extinct yet, but online estate tools have brought will preparation into the 21st century. Bradshaw79/Wikimedia

January 5, 2022

Online tools put will-writing in reach for most people – but they’re not the end of the line for producing a legally binding document

Allison Anna Tait, University of Richmond

Online tools promise to democratize estate planning and will preparation, but users are responsible for complying with state laws.

More and more states are allowing people to use Zoom to finish their wills. LeoPatrizi/Getty Images

May 19, 2020

68% of Americans do not have a will

Reid Kress Weisbord, Rutgers University - Newark and David Horton, University of California, Davis

Dying without a will can cause all sorts of problems for families.

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