In-N-Out — Majority control held by two trusts

In-N-Out is a famous burger chain with stores in California, Nevada, Arizona, and Utah.

An interesting discussion of the succession to this business is found in Michael Hilzik, In-N-Out: Can perfection survive, LA Times, May 7, 2009.  Here is an excerpt from this article:

In-N-Out’s history is anything but dull. The Snyders established a line of succession skipping over their older son, Guy, in favor of the more stable Richard. That well-laid plan dissolved with Richard’s death in a 1993 plane crash. The inheritance passed to Guy, who had a history of drug abuse and died from an overdose of a prescription painkiller in 1999. With Esther’s death seven years later, majority control became vested in two family trusts. It will pass after 2011 to Guy’s only natural child, his daughter Lynsi Martinez, 27.

Special thanks to Joel Dobris (Professor of Law, UC Davis School of Law) for bringing this article to my attention.