The Masterpiece Theater hit "Downton Abbey" offers helpful lessons in a lot of things: turn-of-the-century fashion, 1920s table manners, dramatic face slapping. And while viewers might not realize it, in between all the backstabbing, messy relationships and ego-fueled showdowns, the miniseries is also an in-depth tutorial on the prudence of estate planning. Don't believe it? Here are 8 valuable estate planning tips, straight from TV's grandest estate.
(Alert: If you're not caught up on the show, this article contains significant spoilers. Don't say I didn't warn you!)
Disability insurance is crucial — and not just for white-collar workers.
In season one, John Bates arrived at Downton Abbey as a new valet. Due to an injury sustained during the Boer War, however, he walks with a limp and struggles to perform his duties. (The term "upstairs-downstairs" isn't just figurative.) His disability earns him scorn from some of his fellow staff members, and his boss — the Earl of Grantham — fires him because of it. With no other real skills, Bates has nowhere to go. (Lord Grantham later has a change of heart and gives Bates his job back, though. Aw.)
The lesson? Because most people work for profit-minded corporations and not philanthropic Lord Grantham, it's crucial they protect their ability to earn an income. Whether your client plans to pass down millions to his heirs or just a few hundred dollars, he won't be able to do either if a disability renders him unable to work. Before getting into the nitty gritty of trusts and other estate planning set-ups, most advisors recommend ensuring clients have adequate life and disability coverage.
(AP Photo/PBS, Carnival Film & Television Limited 2011 for MASTERPIECE)
Don't have a clear business succession plan in place? Get one.
In Downton Abbey's first episode, we learned that the heirs to the Earl of Grantham — his brother James Crawley and nephew Patrick — have died on the Titanic. Downton's entail demands that the estate be passed to a male heir — which is now a problem for the earl, who has only daughters. Chaos and drama, of course, ensue.
The lesson? Every business — and Downton Abbey is essentially a business, employing most of the area's residents either directly or indirectly — needs a succession plan, and maybe a backup plan, and maybe a backup to the backup plan. Does your client want to leave his business to his son? Better make sure the son actually wants it. Does he plan to leave it to a business partner? Be careful the business partner doesn't die first. Top-tier advisors know to ask the right questions and plan for all contingencies.
(AP Photo/PBS, Carnival Film & Television Limited 2011 for MASTERPIECE, Nick Briggs)
It's never too early to plan.
In season two, Downton Abbey was converted temporarily into a convalescence facility for soldiers injured during World War I. One of the recovering officers, Major Bryant, takes up with a housemaid, Ethel (pictured at right). When she has his baby, he doesn't acknowledge that the child is his before heading back to the front — where he dies. With no provision for her child — and no job, obviously, because of the whole sleeping-with-a-patient thing — Ethel is forced out on the streets, where she turns up as a prostitute in season three.
The lesson? Whether your client is fathering illegitimate children with servants or just, you know, living a normal life, he doesn't know when his time is going to be up. All clients, young or old, need to have estate planning basics in place — like, say, life insurance coverage and a will — to ensure their families are provided for, whenever they might pass.
(AP Photo/PBS, Carnival Film & Television Limited 2011 for MASTERPIECE, Nick Briggs)
Advisor knows best.
In the season three opener, Lord Grantham (pictured at left) discovers that he's lost most of his fortune — well, his wife Cora's fortune — by investing in a railroad that has gone bankrupt. The future of Downton is up in the air, as the earl's advisors, who warned against going all-in on the investment, tell him, essentially, "Uh, we told you so."
The lesson? Occasionally, your clients are going to want to do some crazy things — put all their money in gold, skip the life insurance protection they need, neglect estate planning altogether. As a trusted advisor, it's your job to educate these clients and steer them in the right direction … which is not toward a tanking Canadian railroad.
