Gary Coleman, the star of the 1970s TV show Diff’rent Strokes passed away suddenly in 2010 and left behind an estate planning mess. He passed away at only 42 years old. He married aspiring actress, Shannon Price, in 2007 and ultimately got divorced from her later. 
The couple continued to live together following their divorce, however, and Price argued that even though they were technically divorced, given the legal definition, they still lived together as husband and wife. In May 2010, Price called 911 and reported that she found her former husband on the floor with blood everywhere. He fell into a coma and was put on life support. The former wife then used an advanced medical directive that was honored by the hospital.
The advanced medical directive never should have been honored by the hospital but it allowed life support to be removed from Coleman’s system. The advanced medical directive stated that it was Coleman’s desire to remain alive as long as possible within the limits of accepted medical care standards.
However, his former wife chose not to honor those desires and used the advanced medical directive powers transferred to her at the time they were married to make that decision. To avoid problems with advanced medical directives and other documents that may name former spouses and other individuals as key decision makers in your stead, contact a knowledgeable estate planning lawyer.
