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Dispossessed After Death: The Disposition Of Tangible Personal Property, Auctions, And Estate Sales

Sometimes even celebrity families need to sell personal items to fund the estate and pay for legal and administrative costs.

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Marilyn Monroe’s famous ‘Happy Birthday Mr. President’ dress at auction (Photo by Scott Nelson/AFP/Getty Images)

In addition to the disposition of real estate, financial accounts, and royalties, a last will and testament also disposes of one’s tangible personal property, or plainly said, one’s things. These items are as large as cars and boats, as valuable as art and jewelry, and as sentimental as books, souvenirs, and family tchotchkes. A last will and testament will dictate how and to whom the testator’s stuff is disposed. In many cases, it can also be the source of additional estate monies to use to pay for estate administration, costs, and legal fees.

Contrary to many individuals’ expectations, a last will and testament does not bear a list of one’s possessions. Clients do not need to inventory their homes for every china plate or piece of clothing. Generally, the last will and testament (or living trust) will categorically distribute the testatrix’s possessions to a surviving spouse, her descendants, or a class of people (for example, she can bequeath all of her silver knick-knacks to her siblings). The executrix is charged with equally (or unequally) distributing the bounty. It is imperative that one person, like an executrix,  be given full discretion to make the decisions as to whom gets which object or if any items must be sold.  Often estates are plagued with arguments and even litigation over invaluable bric-a-brac, because a testatrix failed to include specific directions as to the distribution of tangible property or she did not properly identify an item to be disposed.

Only personal property that can be clearly identified and actually owned by the testatrix is listed in a will.  Examples may include a painting by a prominent artist or a clearly definable and monetarily valuable piece of jewelry (e.g., “my yellow gold 4 carat diamond ring with 6 rubies surrounding the center stone, size 8, and stamped ‘Firenze 1982’”). Such items should have appraisals and insurance riders attached to them. This will assist with the identification of items following a testatrix’s passing. Given the propensity for tangible items to be misplaced  will drafters often opt not to include their dispositions to minimize confusion and even litigation upon a testatrix’s death.

Often a testatrix is encouraged to execute a memorandum following the signing of a last will and testament. In the memorandum, the testatrix writes her wishes as to whom her personal property like jewelry, electronics, and art should be distributed. Often the memorandum need not be filed in the probate court, so as to preserve privacy. In some states, the memorandum is incorporated into the last will and its provisions are enforceable. In other states, such a memorandum is not enforceable and an executrix uses it as a guide in distributing the personal property, but maintains total authority on the disposition of the assets. It is important for a testatrix to get a sense of what is monetarily valuable and what is just sentimental. Items may be nostalgic but have little monetary value. Parents may wish to avoid fighting amongst their children after their deaths and gift jewelry or art during their lifetime.

If one has acquired valuable items during her lifetime, she may direct her executrix to sell the items and use the monies to pay estate expenses or bequests. This is often the case with celebrities who sell their items to fund their charities or foundations. Many of Barbara and Frank Sinatra’s paintings, signed letters, and personal items are presently up for auction. The proceeds will benefit the Barbara Sinatra Children’s Center in Rancho Mirage, California.

Nineties rap icon Tupac Shakur’s personal items are often auctioned, including most recently a high school love letter authored by him. Shakur’s jewelry (including a bullet-damaged medallion) and certain personal affects, have recently been donated to Temple University, specifically the Charles L. Blockson Afro-American Collection.

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Sometimes families need to sell personal items to fund the estate and pay for legal and administrative costs. Artist Robert Indiana, who recently died, has two major artworks scheduled for auction in New York this month. His estate is auctioning the items to help pay for its legal fees as a result of a law suit in United States District Court in Manhattan wherein the decedent’s estate is a defendant. Indiana’s historic Maine house, Vinalhaven, is also in need of repair and the auction proceeds will help pay for these mounting costs.  Indiana’s last will directed that his house be used as a museum following his passing.  Similarly, famous Philadelphia mayor Frank Rizzo’s family is selling his house and more than 700 personal items, following the recent passing of his widow. Included in the sale is one of his famous night sticks and his Rolodex.

Amongst the most popular deceased celebrities whose personal items populate the auction circuit is Marilyn Monroe. Monroe, who died in 1962, had a last will that left all of her personal effects and clothing to her acting coach, Lee Strasberg. Strasberg died in 1982, leaving 75 percent of his interest in Monroe’s estate to his second wife, Ann Strasberg, who established Marilyn Monroe LLC, a Delaware limited liability. In 2010, the company was acquired by Authentic Brands Group and NECA Inc. for an estimated $50 million. Ultimately, the Estate of Marilyn Monroe, LLC was formed.

Ann Strasberg, who was not even named in Monroe’s last will, continues to reap benefit from the Estate of Marilyn Monroe, whose personal items pop up in the most unexpected places. Currently, you can purchase Monroe’s Jewish prayer book or “siddur” at Cedarhurst Gallery in New York where the item, owned by the star following her marriage to playwright Arthur Miller and conversion to Judaism, is up for auction.

Cori A. Robinson is a solo practitioner having founded Cori A. Robinson PLLC, a New York and New Jersey law firm, in 2017. For more than a decade Cori has focused her law practice on trusts and estates and elder law including estate and Medicaid planning, probate and administration, estate litigation, and guardianships. She can be reached at [email protected]. 

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