Wednesday, October 11, 2006

Brooke Astor's Questionable Codicils

If a settlement can be reached before Oct. 13, when a potentially "sensational trial" is scheduled to start, the legal status of three amendments Brooke Astor made to her will late in life may not be determinated until her death. So reported The New York Times last week:

Mrs. Astor’s court-appointed lawyer, who is questioning whether Mrs. Astor was mentally competent to understand the changes to her will that she signed, is challenging the propriety of the three codicils.

The lawyer, Susan I. Robbins, plans to have a handwriting expert determine if the signature on the documents is really Mrs. Astor’s.

Ms. Robbins is particularly concerned about the signature on the third codicil.
The Times notes that a settlement is far from certain. Anthony Marshall, Astor's 83-year-old son, would be required to step down as his mother's financial steward and designated executor.

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