Actress Anne Heche continues to be the source of tension amongst her loved ones – even after her death. She was best known for her roles in various movies and television shows, including Donnie Brasco, Six Days Seven Nights, and Men in Trees.
On August 5, 2022, Heche accidentally crashed her car into a home in the Mar Vista neighborhood of Los Angeles, where she sustained several injuries, ultimately leading to her untimely death at age 53. Her estate is estimated to be worth over $4 million.
Heche was declared legally deceased under California law on August 12, 2022. However, she was temporarily kept on life support to allow her organs to be donated. She was removed from life support on August 14, 2022.
Heche’s oldest child, 20-year-old son Homer Laffoon, whom she shared with ex-husband Coleman Laffoon, filed a petition to be appointed administrator of his mother’s estate. Additionally, Homer claims that James Tupper, his mother’s ex-partner and father of her 13-year-old son, Atlas Heche Tupper, has been interfering in Homer’s attempts at communication with his half-brother ever since Heche died in August of this year. As a result, Homer has also filed a petition to be named as Atlas’s guardian and requested that the court appoint a neutral third party to manage Atlas’s inheritance instead of Tupper.
Can an Email Serve a Will?
Homer also claims that the 2011 document Tupper has presented as Heche’s will is invalid because he believes the signature is not that of his mother. This purported will designates Tupper as the administrator of Heche’s estate. The problem with the will presented by Tupper is that it does not identify two subscribing witnesses. California law requires that the testator will sign in the presence of at least two disinterested witnesses who also sign simultaneously.
The email does not meet the legal requirements for a valid holographic will because the purported will’s material provisions are not in the testator’s handwriting. Under California law, witnesses are not required for a holographic will to be valid. Lastly, the signature and other provisions were not in Heche’s handwriting.
Who Will Manage the Estate?
Courts generally choose as administrator the person most likely to maximize the value of estate assets to the best advantage of those beneficiaries with interest in the estate. As such, the court could decide that a 20-year-old may not have the financial experience necessary to manage an estate of this size and appoint a third party as administrator.
Anne Heche is another celebrity added to the list of those who pass away without proper estate planning. Many people put off estate planning, mistakenly thinking that it’s expensive and that they don’t need to think about it until they are much older or diagnosed with a terminal sickness. Unfortunately, the sad truth is you never know when an accident might happen that could lead to your death, and you could wind up leaving your loved ones with unanswered questions regarding who should get your assets and who you want to raise your minor children. Not having any estate planning documents in place means those important decisions are in limbo, and your loved ones may not have much say or control over what happens. You may not realize it, but even the smallest estates can experience the same unforeseen and costly consequences as wealthy celebrities. Show your loved ones that you cared enough to spare them the stress and expense of not planning for the future. Give us a call so that we can help you get your affairs in order!
At Fleurinord Law PLLC, we make it a point not to just draft documents; we ensure you make educated and empowered decisions about your transition from life to death for yourself and the people you love. We offer a Family Legacy Planning Session. In preparation for this session, you will get more financially organized, which will help you make the best decisions to protect your assets. Call our office at 888-904-2297 today to schedule your initial discovery call and find out how to save $750!