Another Disney movie, The Aristocats, also involves poor estate planning. This time, it’s Edgar Balthazar, the butler, who is the villain.
Madame Adelaide Bonfamille, a wealthy elderly woman, has no living relatives. She adores her cat Duchess and the little kittens.
Madame calls her lawyer, Georges Hautecourt, to come visit and “write her will.” As Edgar eavesdrops downstairs, she reveals to Georges that she wants to leave her very large estate to her cats and Edgar.
Edgar is to care for the cats until their death, and only then will he inherit her fortune. Edgar, of course, immediately schemes to take the cats out of the picture so he can get to Madame’s money sooner.
Good eventually prevails over evil. The cats are saved and returned to Madame, and Edgar is banished.
Again, much of this could have been avoided with proper planning. Had Madame Bonfamillie used trust planning, that made provision for her pets’ care and safety, much of the situation could have been avoided.
We would have missed some great tunes from the alley cats we met during the adventures, but Madame would have been saved much unhappiness and worry.
