Leona Helmsley's Will and the "Grave Visiting" Requirement
Leona Helmsley, the so-called Queen of Mean who died recently, left most of her money to... her dog. The Washington Post has the story here. Some of the other provisions:
She left money to two of her four grandchildren (the children of her deceased son, Jay Panzirer) "so long as they visit their father's grave site once each calendar year. Otherwise, she wrote, neither will get a penny of the $5 million she left for each."According to the article, "Helmsley left nothing to two of Jay Panzirer's other children - Craig and Meegan Panzirer - for 'reasons that are known to them,' she wrote." Ouch!
I would not have recommended the "grave visiting" requirement -- it strikes me as a ham-handed attempt to control people from beyond the grave. If the grandchildren loved their father and view the visitation of his grave as an important way to show this, then they'll visit the grave regardless of any incentive to do so. If the grandchildren didn't love their father, or think there are better ways to show their love than visiting a grave, they're likely to resent the requirement.
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