There is a good reason why the details of how Steve Jobs disposed of his fortune, recently estimated at approximately $5.5 billion,1 have not made their way across the front page of the New York Post. Compare the privacy he achieved for his estate with the estates of Michael Jackson, James Brown and Anna Nicole Smith, the details of which were all over the tabloids within weeks after their respective deaths.
Elite celebrities chased by the paparazzi are not the only ones concerned with protecting their privacy. In a day and age when identity theft is as common as the common cold, and the internet provides personal information at the click of a mouse, people go to great lengths to keep their affairs private during their lifetimes. Financial documents are kept under lock and key, possessions are placed in safe deposit boxes and shredders have become permanent fixtures in many home offices. Yet as safeguard savvy as people may be while they are alive, they often overlook protecting the privacy of the family fortune (no matter the net worth) after their death.
