Guess Who Also Died Without a Last Will and Testament? - Sabrina Winters, Attorney at Law, PLLC

Yes, it is true. Steve McNair, former NFL star, who reportedly earned $75 million dollars during his NFL career, did not have any estate plan in place to protect his family or his estate, for that matter, from paying Federal and State Estate Taxes. I see clients often that do not have any estate plans in place. The most common reason in my experience has been because they feel they do not have enough assets to be worthy of having an estate plan. The next common reason is that they didn't realize they should consider one until someone (a friend, a business associate, a financial planner or someone died) made them aware that one was necessary.

However, it is unfathomable to me that Steve McNair would think he didn't have enough money to need a Will or Trust and that there wasn't a single person in his life (considering his status in the community) that told him to look into it. After all, McNair spent 13 seasons in the NFL-11 years with Tennessee Titans and last 2 years with Baltimore Ravens. He was a three-time Pro Bowler and named the NFL's co-MVP with the Indianapolis Colts' Peyton Manning in 2003.

Although Michael Jackson had a poorly planned estate, at least he had one. McNair's lack of planning has subjected his wife and family to a complicated estate. Listed below are just some of the few things that could have easily been done to avoid some major problems:

1. McNair's surviving spouse, Mechelle McNair will have to post a bond in order to oversee the administration of her husband's estate. A valid Last Will and Testatment or a Revocable Living Trust could have avoided this problem. McNair could have stated in these documents that no bond would be required.

2. McNair left behind two minor children for sure and possibly two more. The mothers of the two children who were born out of wedlock will need to hire lawyers to establish the paternity of their children. In his Last Will and Testament or Revocable Living Trust, McNair could have chosen to include or not include one or more of his children as beneficiaries of his estate.

3. Since all of the children are minors, the respective mothers will need to hire lawyers to set up court-supervised guardianships to oversee the management of their inheritances. In his Last Will and Testament or Revocable Living Trust, McNair could have included trusts for the children that would have avoided the need for court-supervised guardianships. He could have provided distribution of the Trust assets at various ages so that it would not be spent all at once.

4. Tennessee has a separate state estate tax in addition to the federal estate tax. According to the Emergency Petition filed by his wife, the value of McNair's estate at the time of his death will exceed the Tennessee estate tax exemption of $1,000,000 (the house in Nashville is currently on the market for $2,999,990), but it is unknown if the estate will exceed the federal estate tax exemption of $3,500,000. So at the very least, a tax lawyer or accountant will need to prepare and file a Tennessee Inheritance Tax Return, Form INH-301, and any estate taxes due will need to be paid within nine months of the date of death. McNair could have eliminated 100% of Tennessee estate taxes and federal estate taxes by using an ABC Trust scheme in his estate plan.

5. It has also come to light that McNair owned "livestock" located in Mississippi. This could complicate things even more because as an out of state asset, an "ancillary estate" proceeding may need to be opened in Mississippi in addition to the Tennessee probate proceeding, resulting in additional legal fees and costs. Furthermore, if Mississippi has intestacy laws that are different from Tennessee's laws, then the livestock may be divided up among Mechelle and the children in a different manner than how his property will be divided up under Tennessee law.

The bottom line: If Steve McNair had taken the time to create even the most basic estate plan, he could have left more to his wife, protected his children's inheritance well beyond the age of 18 through the use of trusts, avoided the public scrutiny of his assets and family issues, and saved his loved ones thousands or perhaps millions of dollars in legal fees, other costs and estate taxes.

While we can only guess about what Steve McNair would have done had he taken the time to make out a Last Will and Testament or a Living Revocable Trust, I can assure you that it would have been quite different than what is currently playing out in the courts.

This is a prime example of how doing nothing (either because you didn't know or you didn't feel you had to or you didn't want to spend the few thousand dollars now) and relying on state intestacy laws to distribute your estate can devastate your family.