From Unseen Fortune to Unforeseen Twist: The $11 Million Joseph Stancak Estate Case
Joseph Stancak, a quiet resident of Chicago’s Gage Park neighborhood, passed away in 2016. Unbeknownst to many, he left behind an $11 million fortune, the largest unclaimed estate in American history. Without a will and with distant relatives scattered worldwide, a legal battle has ensued over the distribution of his wealth. This case highlights the importance of creating a clear estate plan to avoid unexpected legal battles and ensure your assets are distributed according to your wishes.
How Did Joseph Stancak Accumulate $11 Million?
The exact origins of Joseph Stancak’s $11 million fortune remain a mystery. Our guess would be that, as a child of the depression era, this man simply never spent his money. He lived in a small, unassuming home and repaired his lawn mower for decades instead of replacing it. While the origins of his wealth remain unknown, the question of who would inherit this newfound wealth soon took center stage. Mr. Stancak left behind so much money that Chicago attorney Kenneth Piercy decided to petition the probate court to serve as the estate administrator. He then proceeded to comb through genealogical records to identify 119 living relatives of the deceased that the unclaimed fortune could be allocated to.
Surprise Inheritance? Yes, Please!
Although a great deal of money would naturally be lost from the estate through taxes, fees, and probate costs, Joseph Stancak was still going to leave 119 unsuspecting persons from several different countries, including Poland and Slovakia, with a large surprise inheritance, around $60,000 each. Then came the twist: before the payments could be issued by the court, a petition was filed to the probate court to submit a long-lost will for Joseph Stancak.
The Unforeseen Twist: The Long Lost Will of Joseph Stancak
Seven years after Stancak’s death, a New York organization came forward in June 2023 with a will claiming that the entire estate was left to a charity, Smart Kids Child Care Inc. Is this a likely story, that a reclusive man from Chicago would leave his wealth to a child care charity in New York? Is it reasonable to believe that he would have traveled to New York to sign paperwork? Is this document legitimate or fraudulent?
This will be for the courts to decide. The lawyer who is supposed to have created the will died in a plane crash. How this case will turn out is up in the air, but in the meantime, if any of Stancak’s relatives have already begun to spend the money that they were assured would be paid to them shortly, they may now be in a very bad financial situation.
Takeaway: Estate Planning Prevents Fraud
We believe that this long-lost will is most likely fraudulent. Maybe Joseph Stancak, knowing that he had no close relatives that he desired to give his wealth to, simply didn’t care what happened to the $11 million in his bank account. Maybe he would have cared had he realized that his hard earned money may now end up in the hands of a scam artist.
The Joseph Stancak case serves as a stark reminder. Regardless of the size of your wealth, a well-crafted estate plan ensures your fortune goes where you intend, not into the hands of potential scammers. Contact an experienced estate planning attorney today.
To listen to our full podcast about Joseph Stancak, click here.
06/27/2024 Update:
As of June 2024 Judge Tiernan has accepted the will into evidence, but no further decision has been made. For a more in-depth update you can read Chicago Suntimes Article.