MSBNYY
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Post by MSBNYY on Jan 3, 2008 10:47:13 GMT -5
Sounds like neither of them had a will. There just aren't enough details to figure out why they even had the right to settle like they did.
A will can pretty much override the intestacy laws, though I believe there are protections for spouses.
Obviously that's not an issue here.
The order of death shouldn't be an issue, since Benoit obviously killed his wife first.
In NY, without a will, the entire estate would be split between Benoit's two kids.
At least--Benoit's estate kicks in.
If there was no will involved at all, I think it would work this way, if it were in NY. I am not sure if what is the provision that deals with what happens when one spouse murders the other. Logically, there should be something, but I'd have to look it up. Let's just assume that there was no murder, and they just died. Nancy dies first.
So if I have this right, this is how things would work, had they died in NY, if the order of death is Nancy, Dead Kid, Chris:
1. Nancy dies. Chris now gets $50K plus 1/2 of her stuff. Dead Kid gets the rest. 2. Dead kid dies. He has no kids or grandkids. So according to NY law, his estate is divided among his parents. Nancy is dead, so Chris gets it all. 3. Chris dies. He has no wife, and 2 kids. In NY, they get everything.
Let's rearrange the order:
1. Dead kid dies first. No estate. 2. Nancy dies. Chris gets $50K plus 1/2 of the rest. 3. Nancy has no kids, so HER remainder would revert to her 2 parents equally. 4. Chris dies. And what he has goes to his 2 kids.
Let's assume that if you murder your spouse, you forfeit your rights to her estate.
If Nancy outlives her kid and assuming she has no other kids like Chris does...
She has no spouse, she has no children, so HER estate goes to her parents equally.
If Nancy died first...
Her entire estate goes to Dead Kid. When Dead Kid dies, the first group of relatives that can take the estate are his half siblings, who would split everything.
Under no circumstances, barring a will, would Chris' parents have any rights.
That's NY though. It could be different in whatever state they are in.
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$heriff Tom
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Post by $heriff Tom on Jan 3, 2008 11:00:09 GMT -5
Balls, trust me on this. I have read book-loads of stuff on it, and spent hours listening to every angle on audio. The way this was shaking down was just as I described, Nancy and her family were out, cause she was killed first. That is FACT in this case. They were fighting this for obvious reasons, desperately questioning that she was killed first when all signs pointed to the fact she was.
The other side did not NEED to settle, but they did, for the good of all involved. If they were going by the letter of the law, Nancy and her crew were getting nothing.
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Post by Ms. Jericho on Jan 3, 2008 11:21:37 GMT -5
I am assuming that if you murder your spouse you would indeed forfeit your rights to the estate. It is just like taking out a life insurance policy on someone and then bumping them off. Or, taking out a life insurance policy and then killing yourself so your family can collect. You get nothing.
The issue her is not Nancy's estate though, it is Chris's estate. Most of the money came from him.
Also, in the above scenario, Nancy does have a spouse. She died before Chris no matter when the kid was killed. If he killed her he had to be alive to do it. Even if he is forfeiting the right to HER estate. It should not affect his and his kids should get it. I still think her parents are better off suing for wrongful death if they can. Had Chris not killed their daughter they would have had no claim on his money. Let's say none of this happened and instead they just got a divorce. Nancy gets half. She outlives her parents and all the money goes to Daniel. Her parents are being kind of dumb. And I bet they are justifying it by saying that it isn't the money it is "principle." Benoit's parents didn't kill anyone. Why punish them? And I still think a good chunk of the money should go to his kids.
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MSBNYY
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Post by MSBNYY on Jan 3, 2008 12:13:59 GMT -5
Tom--what state did all this happen in, and was there a will involved? I was only describing a NY law situation where there is no will. Going by the facts as stated. Since you're following it, it would be interesting to look up the laws in THAT state, and see what happens. Extra facts make this easier to look at.
A LOT depends on the state. Is it a community property state? While the brunt of the income came from Chris, that won't mean much if the bank accounts are joint, or if the houses are in her name. It's not uncommon by any stretch to put houses or cars in the spouse's name. In fact, assuming a marriage is going to last, it's in your best interest to equalize the estates as best as possible. They obviously are a very wealthy family, which means that having all the assets in just Chris' name would be galactically stupid.
What's confusing is why Chris' parents are involved. That doesn't make sense, unless they are appointed trustees for Chris' other kids, though logically, that role should be filled by the mother that Chris did not kill.
Chris' estate, if this happened in NY, should go completely to his living kids, barring a will saying otherwise. Nancy's parents would only have a claim on HER estate, though given the marriage, it could be ample and there could easily be a conflict between Nancy's parents, and Chris' other kids.
I'd have to look up the wrongful death stuff.
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$heriff Tom
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Post by $heriff Tom on Jan 3, 2008 12:20:41 GMT -5
I am pretty sure its the state the crimes were committed in, Georgia.
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MSBNYY
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Post by MSBNYY on Jan 3, 2008 12:41:16 GMT -5
Ok, doing this with Georgia law, and assuming that Chris would not be entitled to Nancy's estate because he murdered her:
1. Nancy dies before Daniel. 2. Daniel survives Nancy, gets all of her estate. 3. Daniel dies. 4. Assuming Chris' other kids are considered siblings (and logically, they would be), they would get the loot.
Also, under this situation, when Chris dies, he doesn't have a wife, and he doesn't have Daniel, and Daniel has no kids, so there's no interest there. All of Chris' stuff goes to his other kids.
So basically, without a will, and assuming that half brothers/sisters are considered siblings under Georgia law, if Nancy dies first, the entire kit and kaboodle goes to Chris' other kids, and Nancy's parents get jack.
Reverse it.
1. Daniel dies first. With no issue, he no longer exists to inherit anything. 2. Nancy dies. She has no children descendants of children and of course no spouse. 3. Nancy's parents get her entire estate, shared equally between them.
So if Daniel dies first, Nancy's parents make money. If Nancy dies first, they get bupkis.
Chris' parents MUST be acting on behalf of their grandchildren. It doesn't make much sense otherwise.
Though there are some differences between Georgia and NY (the spouse gets more in NY), nothing really changes under the current facts, but at the same time, that's in line with what Tom said originally.
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Post by Ms. Jericho on Jan 3, 2008 15:51:03 GMT -5
Which explains why her parents were trying to say that Daniel did die first. Idiots.
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MSBNYY
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Post by MSBNYY on Jan 3, 2008 15:55:14 GMT -5
That's assuming they have no will. Estate planning was a big interest of mine in law school. The idea that they wouldn't have a will is really stupid though. Too much money, and there are children involved.
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Post by Ms. Jericho on Jan 3, 2008 16:09:05 GMT -5
Especially someone like Benoit who travelled so much.
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Post by thecaptain15 on May 12, 2009 13:58:17 GMT -5
Updated: May 12, 2009, 1:13 PM ET Doctor sentenced in drug caseComment Email Print Share ESPN.com news services
NEWNAN, Ga. -- The personal doctor to a professional wrestler who killed himself, his wife and their 7-year-old son was sentenced to 10 years in prison for illegally distributing prescription drugs to patients.
Dr. Phil Astin, 54, was sentenced Tuesday after pleading guilty Jan. 29 to 175 counts that including illegally distributing prescription drugs.
World Wrestling Entertainment's Chris Benoit killed his family and then himself in 2007 in their suburban Atlanta home. A medical examiner couldn't say whether the steroids Astin prescribed for Benoit played a role in the deaths.
U.S. District Judge Jack Camp said there was no doubt the 54-year-old Astin tried to help hundreds of patients at his western Georgia clinic. But the judge said he could not overlook the fact that two patients died as a result of Astin's misconduct.
Astin pleaded guilty in January to a 175-count federal indictment. He also admitted that prescriptions he issued resulted in the overdose death of a female patient in 2007.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
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Post by 4dogg on May 12, 2009 16:23:13 GMT -5
i cant believe i started this thread almost 2 years ago
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Post by thecaptain15 on May 12, 2009 17:18:49 GMT -5
Dr. Melnitz would have beaten the rap!
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$heriff Tom
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Post by $heriff Tom on May 13, 2009 7:04:19 GMT -5
Know whats funny? After he is released, he is going to have three years of "supervised release" and "250 hours of community service."
LOL@ the kick in the pants of having to stand on the side of the road and pick up trash, or help build homes for the destitute, after spending a heap of years in the clink.
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