Celebrity Estate Lessons - Solon - Harrison Estate Law

Wills have existed from time immemorial, but have you ever wondered who was the first person to have the bright idea to write down what they want done with their stuff? Well put on your shendyt, brush up on your hieroglyphics, and join me on a trip to ancient Egypt.

The earliest Will was discovered in a tomb in Kahun, dating to around 2500 BC. In it, the unknown writer leaves his entire estate to his wife, Teta, but does include a number of stipulations. Just like many Wills today, it was signed by two witnesses.

However, the first Will is popularly attributed to Solon, an ancient Greek statesman. According to Plutarch, prior to Solon, a person’s belongings were distributed among their family members. However, Solon had some rules relating to Wills; the person writing them must be a citizen of Athens, a man at least 20 years old, must not be adopted, have no male children, in their right mind, not imprisoned, or ‘induced to it by the charms and insinuations of a wife’.

In ancient Greek times, Wills didn’t have to be written down, but could just declared in front of an appropriate number of people. Even so, most often it was put on paper and signed by two witnesses.

Historically, Wills didn’t have to be long. One of the shortest ones was found in Germany and simply stated “All to wife”. Not everyone was so succinct, though. Frederica Cook, daughter-in-law of explorer Sir Francis Cook wrote a four-volume gilt-edged Will reaching 1,065 pages and 95,940 words.

No matter what your Will may look like, it’s important to have one. Getting your paperwork done is a great and easy way to accomplish New Year’s Resolution! Contact Harrison Estate Law, P.A.

News Flash: Millionaires can be eccentric. Such was Charles Vance Millar, who loved a practical joke, and didn’t let death stop him from enjoying them. Clauses included leaving a vacation home in Jamaica to three men who hated each other as long as they lived there together. But the most well known clause was the one that began what came to be known as The Great Stork Derby.

After a few other bequests, the remainder of his estate was to be changed into cash and given to the Toronto woman who had the most children in the ten years after his death. Just like that, the women of Toronto were off and running. There ended up being seventeen families in serious contention. The 5 front runners had 56 children all together, although only 32 were eligible to be counted under the clauses of the Will.

In the end, four women, Annie Katherine Smith, Kathleen Ellen Nagle, Lucy Alice Timleck, and Isabel Mary Maclean, tied for first place, with each of them giving birth to nine babies. The fortune, at this point worth $568,106, was split and each family claimed $110,000, or over $2 million in today’s money. Three of the winners had to pay relief money back to the city.

Two other women, Lillian Kenny and Pauline Mae Clarke, were awarded $12,500 each. Some of Pauline’s children were disqualified as during the decade she had left her husband, although they remained married. During this time she had children with another man. However, the law declared that only legitimate children were be counted in Wills unless otherwise notated. Two of Lillian’s children were stillborn, and the ruling was that the Will only referred to live children. These last two women had given birth ten and eleven times respectively, and were given the smaller sum in exchange for ending appeals.

Wills, while legal documents, don’t have to be super serious. When you’re writing your Will, maybe throw in something fun, like only bequeathing your second nephew thrice removed $10 if they eat an ice cream first. Although, causing women to give birth to dozens of children might be a bit more than is necessary.