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Legal Briefs“I Don’t Need a Will Because My Daughter Is Going to Split Everything.”OBy Kathleen Cassidy Goodman, PLLCne of the most common statements I hear in my office is, “My daughter knows how I wantthings distributed, and she is on all my accounts, so I don’t need a Will.” Similarly, parents with multiple children mistakenly believe that if they designate one child as the sole beneficiary on a bank account or life insurance policy, they will eliminate the need for a Will. This is a big mistake.People use this method and think that the child they have listed on the bank account will use the proceeds to pay for funeral and other final expenses. Then the distribute is directed to distribute the remaining balance equally among the other children. While you may trust your adult child to do the right thing, your child may not follow your desires for various reasons. Your empty threat that you “will come back and haunt them” may not be sufficiently frightening.The child you have named as your beneficiary is under NO legal obligation to use this money in the manner in which you had intended. There are a variety of reasons and justifications to not follow your instructions. Normally, it is not that he or she just gets greedy, keeps the money, and walks away without distributing any of the money to the siblings. Instead, the person’s spouse may intimidate them into keepingCome JoinTheFun!Come take a tour and enjoy an amazing culinary experience in our beautiful dining room!Call Tina for more information!(210) 404-144418323 Sonterra Place San Antonio, Texas 78258Independent and Assisted Livingwww.franklinpark.orgLearn More About Us at...franklinpark.org#104458OPPORTUNITYthe money by saying, “If your parent wanted your siblings to have anything, they would have left it to them. They wanted you to have it.”Additionally, your designated beneficiary may feel justified in withholding your funds from their siblings. For instance, the designated child may be the person who cares for you, takes you to all your doctor appointments, grocery shopping, and checks in with you on a daily basis. His or her siblings may fail to send you a card or call you on your birthday, and never stop by to see you. In this case, he or she may feel justified in keeping their sibling’s share.This method may work to distribute your cash at your death, but if you don’t have a Will you still need to consider the other issues. How will your other assets be transferred? You need to consider transferring the house, any other real property, mineral interests, personal property, the car, the furniture, and jewelry.Kathleen Cassidy Goodman is an attorney in areas of estate planning, probate, civil litigation, and business law. She can be reached at her office in Helotes at (210) 949-1000 or for more information, visit www.bexarlaw.comWinterFest San Antonio In Stone Oaky Staff BLbringing 80,000 pounds of snow straight from the North Pole with him!WinterFest San Antonio presented by Baptist Health System will be held in the North Central Baptist Hospital parking lot from 10am to 3pm.Winterfest is fun for the whole family and features two snow slides and a snow playing area, performances by local schools and performance groups, photos with Santa, a carnival and lots of super fun kids activities. There’s also holiday shopping from our local artisans, food and drinks and SNOW much more!A portion of the proceeds from WinterFest will go to help kids with disabilities or delays and their families at Brighton Center including therapy, education, support and childcare.All-Inclusive Early Bird tickets are available for only $10 until November 7th and$15afterthatdate. Parents’ticketsare only $5 so get your tickets early before they sell out and take advantage of the early bird discount. It’sgoingtobeSNOWMUCHFUN!et it snow in Stone Oak! On Saturday, December 6th, Santa Claus is coming to town andFor tickets, sponsorship/vendor booths, volunteer opportunities or performance requests, please visit us at: www.winterfestivalsa.comOctoberr 2025www.stoneoakhighlights.com 15EQUAL HOUSING