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Jewish World Review
March 6, 2006
/ 6 Adar, 5766
Laugh all you want, but a former stripper's lawsuit could reshape the nation's probate law
By
Jonathan Turley
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
It is a classic American tale: Boy meets stripper, boy marries stripper,
stripper goes to court to get the dead boy's estate. Of course, in this
case, the "boy" was 90-year-old oil magnate Howard Marshall and the stripper
is the buxom reality-TV star Anna Nicole Smith. The court is none other than
the U.S. Supreme Court, where Anna's appearance today will draw more
coverage than it would if Chief Justice John Marshall returned from the dead
for the argument.
In the case of Marshall v. Marshall (Smith's legal name is Vickie Lynn
Marshall), the characters are more interesting than are the issues.
This case, however, might have far-reaching consequences for both state and
federal courts. The court will decide whether federal courts should defer to
state probate courts in matters of disputed wills. Indeed, Smith might
achieve a small type of legal immortality ‹ becoming for probate law what
Miranda was to criminal law and Brown was to constitutional law. Of course,
before she becomes the pin-up girl for probate lawyers, the court must sift
through a case that would have been rejected by Hollywood scriptwriters as a
bad Dallas re-run.
Smith's transformation from stripper to law giver is quite a turnaround by
any measure. It began when Howard Marshall's chauffeur drove him to Rick's
Cabaret, a strip club in Houston, and he saw Smith, a popular 23-year-old
topless dancer and a Playboy model. Marshall was an 86-year-old in a
wheelchair with a penchant for strippers. (His mistress for 22 years was
another Houston stripper, Jewel DiAnne "Lady" Walker, who had died two
months earlier from complications from liposuction surgery.)
While Smith described him as a "frisky man," Marshall lived only 14 months
after their marriage. When he died, things got ugly with Marshall's son and
heir, Pierce, who revealed that, shortly before his death, Marshall had
changed his earlier will to make it irrevocable ‹ a will that did not
mention Smith.
These types of disputes are usually resolved in state probate courts. Yet
the Texas court was never a promising venue for Smith, who had only a claim
of an oral promise from Marshall. (Smith would prove a disastrous witness,
appearing in a pink top emblazoned with the word "Spoiled" and admitting
that she can't understand most multi-syllabic words).
Sensing a dry hole in Texas state court, Smith's attorneys went to federal
bankruptcy court, claiming the assets of the estate as part of her potential
worth. This time, it was Pierce who cratered before the court. The federal
judge found that Pierce had destroyed evidence (related to the trust for
Smith) and engaged in misconduct showing "willfulness, maliciousness and
fraud." He awarded Smith $450 million, later lowered to $89 million and then
reversed by a federal appellate court in deference to the Texas probate
court.
Now, the question is whether the court will issue a decision against the
federal courts. Ironically, by wrapping herself in the jurisdiction of the
federal courts, Smith has a new patron: Uncle Sam. The U.S. solicitor
general will appear in defense of her bankruptcy judgment.
Even without this money, Smith has earned millions from the proceeds of her
reality show and other ventures ‹ not bad for a woman who began as a night
cook at Jim's Krispy Fried Chicken in Mexia, Texas. Indeed, in a recent poll
by Forbes.com, Smith was ranked as 5th out of the 10 most financially savvy.
Though it is true that she lost to Warren Buffett, Alan Greenspan and
economist (also 1976 Noble Laureate) Milton Friedman, she did manage to beat
Bill Gates and Donald Trump.
For any stripper-turned-millionaire wannabes, the case is a cautionary tale
that one should research carefully before abandoning the dance pole. There
are 41 "common law property" states where surviving spouses have two options
when facing a contested estate. In virtually all common-law states, the
spouse can either accept what was given under the will or take an "elective
share," or "force share," usually one-third of the estate. So, if your sugar
daddy left you struggling on $100 million of a $1.6 billion estate in his
will, you can "elect against the will" and take a statutory share of roughly
$533 million.
If you are in a community-property state (such as Texas), property acquired
during the marriage is owned equally. While Smith claimed $800 million under
community-property rule (not including $6 million in gifts), much of
Marshall's estate was not only gained before their marriage but most of it
(except roughly $100 million) also was put into independent trusts before
his death and is not legally part of the estate.
Of course, for probate lawyers, this will be forever known as the lap dance
that changed the law. Trust me, for probate law that is about as exciting as
it can get.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
JWR contributor Jonathan Turley is a law professor at George Washington University.
Click here to visit his website. Comment by clicking here.
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© 2005, Jonathan Turley
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