Some people really do leave money to their pets. And it’s legal.
In June 2019, designer Karl Lagerfeld passed away. A chunk of his fortune, amassed after decades of helming the fashion house Chanel, was left to his cat, Choupette.
“There is no marriage, yet, for human beings and animals,” he told CNN in 2013. “I never thought I would fall in love like this with a cat.”
If the bequest seems unusual, it’s not. Estate attorneys told CNN they’re seeing more incidences of people making financial plans for their pets after they die. Some of the bequests are quite generous.
Twenty-nine states have enacted pet trust laws since 2008, and now every state, plus Washington, DC, has some form of guidelines, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
It’s a twisty money matter, though. Pet bequests have been known to be challenged in court, …