The Psychology of Wills

Ronald Chester (Professor of Law, New England School of Law) has recently published his article entitled The Psychology of Dead Hand Control, 43 Real Prop., Tr. & Est. L.J. 505 (2009).

Here is a summary of his article:

This Article discusses the historical motivations for the use of dead hand control, noting the spirituality of historical wills. The author notes modern American wills extend dead hand control significantly farther into subsequent generations than their historical counterparts. The Article discusses possible explanations for the increase in the use of nonspiritually based dead hand control, including Americans’ optimism, individualism, and materialism. The author posits that one explanation for the different and more extensive dead hand control being practiced in modern estate plans is aggressive marketing by professionals. The author concludes with a discussion of the emergence of dynasty trusts in America, raising the question of whether these trusts are antithetical to historical American values.