Aretha Franklin died without a will or trust for her reported $80 million estate. According to the Detroit Free Press, her four children filed a document on Tuesday listing themselves as interested parties. Meanwhile, Franklin's niece Sabrina Owens asked the court to appoint her as personal representative of the estate.
According to Michigan law, the assets of an unmarried person who dies without a will are divided equally among any children. Attorney Don Wilson, who represented Franklin for 28 years, says he repeatedly told her to create a trust. "Nobody likes to give careful thought to their own demise," he notes. Franklin died from pancreatic cancer on August 16. She was 76.
Source: Freep