Has anyone else ever had to deal with friends or family trying to manipulate a loved one for inheritance money, especially when they’re facing a terminal illness?
I’m currently in a tough spot with this happening, and my partner is still with me. If you’ve been through something like this, how did you cope? Or, if you’re dealing with an illness yourself, have you noticed people acting differently towards you because of it?
I had a friend try to do this to me too. They went as far as trying to take guardianship over my son. Long story short, their plan was to somehow get him into an institution and get control of his money, just because he’s autistic. They even tried to keep his dad out of the picture. This all started when I developed some health issues after radiation treatments.
They thought they could get away with it. Let’s just say they got what they deserved in the end.
Just a reminder that having a will and a medical directive in place can really protect you.
Put it in writing, and if you can, get a lawyer or use a reliable online service to help with it.
Simply talking to people about what you want isn’t enough. Trusting family members to make the right choice might also not be enough. I run an estate sale company, so I see this stuff every day. The things families will do are shocking, and much of it could be avoided if there was a solid will in place.
After I got my diagnosis, the first thing I did was call my lawyer to make sure everything was set so that my common-law wife would get everything and have full control over any medical decisions. We aren’t officially married, so I didn’t want any issues with it. My lawyer even gave me a discount when they found out the reason behind it.
It wasn’t about money, but my stepson thought he had a right to control my partner’s final arrangements.
We had been friends for 20 years and partners for 18. We had always discussed our plans, even before my partner got diagnosed.
When he passed, my stepson’s behavior caused a huge rift. I had to promise my partner I’d honor his son’s inheritance, just to avoid writing him out of the will.
Oddly enough, the only upside of this happening in April 2020 was that family members couldn’t travel here for a funeral.