Puff, the Magic Dragon, and the Estate Planner

34 Pages Posted: 22 Jan 2016 Last revised: 27 Jun 2016

See all articles by Gerry W. Beyer

Gerry W. Beyer

Texas Tech University School of Law

Brooke Dacus

California Lutheran University

Date Written: 2016

Abstract

With the legalization of medical and recreational marijuana in almost half of the states, practitioners need to be aware of interface between marijuana and estate planning. This article provides a discussion of the major issues that arise. After bringing readers up-to-date with the history of legalized marijuana, the article focuses on how marijuana use may impact a user’s capacity to execute a will and other estate planning documents. The article then examines other estate planning concerns such as will and trust provisions conditioning benefits on the non-use of “illegal drugs” and the impact of marijuana use on life insurance policies. The article wraps up with a discussion of how an estate planner may deal with marijuana-based assets when planning an estate and how to value those assets after the owner has died.

Keywords: estate planning, wills, trusts, marijuana, life insurance, testamentary capacity

JEL Classification: K11

Suggested Citation

Beyer, Gerry W. and Dacus, Brooke, Puff, the Magic Dragon, and the Estate Planner (2016). 3 Texas A&M University Journal of Property Law 1 (2016), Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2719258

Gerry W. Beyer (Contact Author)

Texas Tech University School of Law ( email )

3311 18th Street
Lubbock, TX 79409-0004
United States
806-834-4270 (Phone)
978-285-7941 (Fax)

HOME PAGE: http://www.ProfessorBeyer.com

Brooke Dacus

California Lutheran University ( email )

United States

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