Jerry Lewis Disinherits His Sons

Jerry Lewis was a legendary comedian, but his family life appears to have been no laughing matter.

He had six sons with his first wife whom he married in 1944 and divorced in 1980. He married a second wife in 1983 and eventually adopted a newborn daughter with her.

Shortly after adopting the child, Lewis is believed to have cut all ties with his sons from his first wife for unknown reasons.

Some details from his will have now been released. He cut all of those sons out of it, according to the Los Angeles Times in “Jerry Lewis excludes his sons from his will.”

Lewis did not give any specific reasons why he disinherited his sons.

It is not known whether the sons will contest the will. However, if they want to, then because Lewis left them nothing, any no-contest clause would not prevent them from challenging the will in probate.

That could turn out to be a mistake, since even losing will contests can end up costing estates a lot of time and money.

If you would like to exclude any children of yours from your estate plan, then it is important that you do so properly.

It is best to seek out the advice of an experienced elder law attorney, so you can figure out how to disinherit a child in a way that makes it less likely the child will launch costly legal challenges that will hold up in court.

Reference: Los Angeles Times (Sep. 22, 2017) “Jerry Lewis excludes his sons from his will.”

Hear From Our Clients

I heard Cindy’s presentation at a Senior Luncheon at my church, and was very impressed. She helped my daughter and me understand many aspects of elder law. Josh has also been very helpful in my planning to enter an independent living situation . I have told many friends about them.

- Charlotte

The very best elder law attorney and staff anyone could ever ask for! I have referred a number of clients to Cindy and she never disappoints. She is kind, caring, and extremely thorough in making sure everything is completed as it should be. I highly recommend Cindy for anyone needing lawyer services; she truly goes above and beyond for every client she helps and has had a huge impact in so many peoples’ lives. Thank you, Cindy and staff, for everything that you do- I’m so glad to know you!

- Kerri

Cindy and the Nelson Elder Care Law team are trustworthy and helpful. They are the experts in elder care law. At Leaf Cremation, we entrust our families to the care of the Nelson team when their services are needed.

- Pierce

Josh Nelson, and his staff, have been amazingly helpful to our family. The ins and outs of nursing homes, the rules and regulations that govern Medicare and Medicaid are daunting and the folks at Nelson Elder Care Law have been informative, responsive, and above all, empathetic. I cannot emphasize enough how their service has taken a weight off of our shoulders especially during a world pandemic that has targeted nursing homes across our country. I highly recommend retaining Josh and his firm!

- Marcia

I had a simple legal question to them that I needed answered and they very helpful in giving me the information I needed. I highly recommend them and will reach out to them if I need more advice or assistance. Thank you for taking your time to just answer a couple of questions I had!

- Ben