The Helmsley Estate Battle to Continue
I have written and commented on many occasion on the most famous case of the estate of Leona Helmsley.
It is well documented that she left several million dollars to her dog Trouble, and that the bulk of her estate of almost $8 billion dollars was to be used for the care and welfare of animals.
The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is now reporting that they have joined other organizations in filing suit against the Trustees of the Helmsley estate.
The ASPCA website reports:
“Mrs. Helmsley’s Trust Agreement was clear: Help dogs. And the Trustees have not done this, and instead pursued their own agendas with Mrs. Helmsley’s money,” said Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of The Humane Society of the United States. “Every person with a will or estate, and every charity that relies on bequest income, should be profoundly concerned about this misdirection of funds.”
You can read the entire story here.
Certainly, with the amount of money that is involved, this is not a controversy that will end soon.
The result of this legal battle will have a lasting affect on all estate planning for all animal owners.
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