The Destructive Power of Family Wealth. Marcovici Philip

      The Nina Wang case fascinated Hong Kong and the world as it unfolded over the years. The press reported the kidnappings of Teddy Wang, the second of which was even rumored to have been engineered by Nina herself. Nina's alleged extra-marital affair, which had resulted in Teddy excluding her from benefitting under his will, also became a topic of gossip. But stripping away the dramatic elements of the story leaves a number of clear questions. What did Teddy Wang ultimately want in terms of where the family business he owned, which had been started by his father, would go in the event of his death? Were there steps Teddy, or perhaps better, his own father, could have taken to keep the business away from Nina if that was their intention?

      Nina ended up being a good steward of the business after Teddy's death. Despite her eccentricity, the value of the business grew to over US$4 billion by the time she passed away. But could she have also considered succession plans that would have made it less of a risk that her Fung Shui master and companion would get it all by forging her signature on a will purporting to leave everything to him? As it turned out, even lavish gifts to her young lover were not enough to stop him taking illegal actions in an attempt to get it all.

      Vincent Astor's father, John Jacob Astor, died in the sinking of the Titanic. Brooke Astor married Vincent, the heir of one of the wealthiest families in the world, in a time of reported financial distress after the death of her second husband. Vincent Astor was reported to be a difficult individual and husband and, perhaps fortunately for Brooke Astor, died only six years after their marriage, leaving her most of his wealth.

      Anthony (Tony) Marshall, Brooke Astor's son from her first marriage, was reported to have had a troubled relationship with his mother, at least in part deriving from the abusive relationship of Brooke Astor with Tony Marshall's natural father. Marshall, who took the name of Brooke's second husband, also had a reportedly terrible relationship with Vincent Astor.

      When Vincent Astor died in 1959, he left Brooke Astor US$120 million, half to her and half to a foundation she was to run. An enormous sum in 1959, Brooke Astor became one of New York's top socialites and philanthropists. As she aged, Brooke Astor was reported to be distant from her son, whom she referred to as “not an Astor,” largely excluding him from participation in her philanthropic work and otherwise. While Tony was involved in managing a portion of his mother's money, Brooke planned to give most of her own money to charity rather than to him.

      Over the years, and prior to her death at 105, Brooke Astor became more and more dependent on the care of her son and of others. Diagnosed with Alzheimer's, Brooke Astor's friends and several members of her family were concerned at what they viewed as “elder abuse” taking place at the hands of Tony. One of Tony's own children, Philip Marshall, initiated legal proceedings to have Tony Marshall removed as his grandmother's guardian. In the proceedings that followed, both of Tony Marshall's sons testified against him. The proceedings led not only to Tony's removal as guardian, but eventually to the filing of criminal charges against him and a lawyer involved, and their conviction and jailing.

      Over her lifetime, Brooke Astor had executed more than 30 wills and amendments, and as the courts ultimately found, at least some of these were executed when Brooke Astor no longer had the mental capacity to understand her actions. Will amendments favoring Tony Marshall were made, according to Brooke Astor's own lawyer, at least in part on the instructions of Tony himself. Evidently, Tony Marshall was constantly working on his mother and her lawyer to make amendments in his favor.

      Tony Marshall was ultimately convicted of having taken advantage of his mother who, suffering dementia, became more and more dependent on him. Among others, Tony Marshall was alleged to have encouraged Brooke Astor to change her will in his favor and, during her lifetime, to have helped himself to his mother's art, jewelry, and money.

      Tony Marshall did manage to get himself released from prison for medical reasons after only two months of incarceration, but at the age of 89, it is hard not to conclude that wealth destroyed Tony Marshall and his relationships with his mother and his two natural children. But, in this saga, was Tony Marshall the only “bad guy?” Are there lessons here for all families, particularly in a time of changing demographics, and the reality that we are all living much longer than was the case in the past? What of the increasing frequency of cases of dementia and related problems facing the elderly?

      I can envision conversations between Brooke Astor and her only son in the years leading up to her death being more about money and what Tony would ultimately get than about anything else. I believe that there are too many families where aging parents spend more time than they should worrying about succession issues that should have been concluded years before. Should someone who is in hospital be surrounded by lawyers and children positioning themselves for their inheritance rather than by family members who are there because they want to be? Should children and grandchildren feel they need to pay attention to their elders because they feel the need to protect their financial interests?

      Would Brooke Astor have been able to reduce the risk of wealth destroying her family by letting her son know, early on in his life, that she would not be giving him much, her desire being to benefit charities with the bulk of her assets? Would Tony Marshall have been encouraged to build his own career rather than be so focused on his possible inheritance? Would the expectations of Tony's third wife, disliked by Brooke Astor and by most of the press covering the story, have been different had Astor been much clearer early on as to what Tony would get and when?

      Brooke Astor remembered her daughter-in-law in her will, leaving her two used, size six mink coats, knowing very well that Charlene Marshall could never fit into them.

      At what age should children of wealthy parents receive a good chunk of what they may ultimately get? With the death of Brooke Astor at the age of 105, Tony Marshall was 83 by the time he was able to inherit. Stealing from his mother was wrong, but under the unfortunate circumstances of the family, perhaps not that much of a surprise.

      And were all of the lawyers and other advisors meant to be looking after Brooke Astor's interests really doing so, or were they listening to their future client, Tony Marshall, rather than focusing on the interests of his aging mother? Was Brooke Astor right to trust them? Perhaps Charlene, Tony's wife, was a gold-digger. How can we identify and deal with “gold-digging” sons or daughters-in-law?