There is no doubt that Prince had clear intentions about the rights to his music. According to a 1996 interview in Rolling Stone Prince said, “If you don’t own your masters, your master owns you.” Unfortunately, however, it is coming to light that Prince did not have as much clarity with his own estate planning.
This last week his sister filed court documents requesting a special administrator for the estate, stipulating that she was not aware that Prince had ever created a will. This means that if the court finds no evidence of a will, an individual who inherits the estate will be responsible for determining what to do with all of the late artist’s assets.
Control over his music, including rumors about a large collection of unpublished material, may have died with Prince. Unfortunately, the loss of his music could just be the beginning of the challenges faced by individuals interested in his estate. If he did not do much in terms of estate planning, he will owe taxes on whatever estate administrators and the IRS agree to be its value.
The estate could be worth as much as $300 million and this does not include any unpublished music. There are several steps that Prince could have taken to minimize the enormous tax consequences including federal estate taxes of up to 40% and a Minnesota tax rate of 16%. It looks like approximately half of Prince’s estate could go directly to the federal government if no other estate planning strategies are identified.
This can be an important lesson for individuals across Massachusetts to take control of their estate planning regardless of the size of their estate. Contact an experienced Massachusetts estate planning attorney today.
