The Fallacy of “I’ll let the kids take care of it.”

“I don’t need a Will, my kids will figure it out when I’m gone,” is a statement I’ve heard one too many times from misinformed, well-meaning folks. The whole notion that you don’t need a Last Will and Testament because the kids will figure it out is just not in line with the reality of the law or with the reality of how these situations usually turn out.

According to the laws of the state of Tennessee, if a family member does not leave a Last Will and Testament, and then passes away their assets are distributed according to the laws of the State of Tennessee, or as we refer to it, according to the “Government’s Rule Book.” When family member’s do not leave a Last Will and Testament they’re not leaving it up to the kids to figure out, like so many think they are; they’re actually leaving it up to the government to determine how their Estate will be administered upon their death.

Furthermore, what small part the kids do have a say in often leads to unnecessary fights and animosity in the family. It’s not that your kids are not “good kids,” it’s that the emotions that come along with Mom or Dad passing away make people react in unusual and unexpected ways. Now that dad has passed away the chair that Dad sat in that your older brother could not care less about before Dad passed, is now super important to the him because that is all he has left of Dad. This is how all too many family arguments begin.

So, if you don’t want to leave the distribution of your assets up the Government’s Rule Book and want to leave some instructions to your children about the distribution of assets, make sure you leave a Last Will and Testament.