Lottery Winner may turn down jackpot

[RunningBum]

https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo...ckpot-but-huge-mistake-leaves-prize-unclaimed

Hadn't seen this posted yet, unless it was buried in another thread I haven't read.

A woman hit a $559M Powerball jackpot but doesn't want to claim the prize unless she can do it anonymously. Trying to decide if she's being wise or not. Apparently she realizes her life is good and doesn't want to ruin it with the burden of the riches. (Please, everyone, spare us the line about having her send you the money and you'll take the burden.) But, why spend money on tickets if you aren't going to cash in?

She might have been able to claim it anonymously, or at least in a vaguely named trust, but she signed the ticket as I've heard is recommended. The lottery commission is saying that since she's done that, her name will be made public. They say they won't accept the ticket if she whites out or crosses out her name. She's got a lawyer who is still trying to find a way to keep her anonymous, and he is also her spokesman. The lawyer successfully kept a 2016 winner anonymous with a trust, and recommends on their website to NOT sign the ticket, but this winner apparently read this too late.

I suppose she could claim the prize and immediately change her name and relocate, like a witness relocation, but it sounds like she wants to keep her current life and friends.

Even if she tied it up in a trust, she will still be hounded for donations from that trust, and bad people figuring she still has money they can get from her either swindling or strong armed robbery.

Given the situation she's in now, unless they find another way to keep her anonymous, I think I'd spend the next year figuring out which charities to give 99+% of the money to, and only keep a very small amount (probably under $1M) which I could spend on my self but not be enough to be a target for anyone. I just don't think I'd like to live life surrounded by security and not trusting anyone new I met, and even being wary of old friends. It doesn't sound like she wants to either.

 

[jim584672]

First World Problems.

Everyone knows when you win you are not private. She can hire a legion of guards to protect her. Cry me a river.

 

[aaronc879]

If I won the lottery I would sign the ticket and take the money without hesitation. I think the concerns are over exaggerated.

 

[GrayHare]

If she did not want to win, why did she buy a ticket? Even the lottery ads remind, "You can't win if you don't play."

 

[RunningBum]

She may wind up taking it, but is just trying every opportunity to stay anonymous before she has to go public.

 

[jazz4cash]

I read the article twice and didn't notice anywhere that she may turn it down. It says the prize remains unclaimed while she pursues a legal remedy to claim it anonymously since she blew the chance to name a trust as owner of the ticket. I presume if that fails she will accept the publicity along with her winnings.

 

[growing_older]

What is the problem with crossing out the name and writing the new name? Or make a few creative additions and start the AmyOBL CoZldER YnaXmeCHANGE TRUST. I will be astonished if she turns down 500+ millions. I suspect that is lawyer posturing to help get publicity and sway the lottery board. Is the rule really you must write your name neatly and make no mistakes? Is this a penmanship lottery?

 

[RunningBum]

What is the problem with crossing out the name and writing the new name? Or make a few creative additions and start the AmyOBL CoZldER YnaXmeCHANGE TRUST. I will be astonished if she turns down 500+ millions. I suspect that is lawyer posturing to help get publicity and sway the lottery board. Is the rule really you must write your name neatly and make no mistakes? Is this a penmanship lottery?

From the article:

Steven Gordon, the woman's attorney, asked if she could white out her name and replace it with the name of a trust, reports The Union Leader, but lottery officials told her any change would invalidate the ticket and she'd lose her winnings

It makes sense. The reason for writing your name down is so that if you lose possession of the ticket somehow, you'd still have a chance to claim it, and nobody with a different name could claim it. Otherwise, someone could steal the ticket, and say, "I meant to write down the name of a trust (or lawyer or whatever), so I'm just going to cross this name out and write in the new one."

 

[RunningBum]

I read the article twice and didn't notice anywhere that she may turn it down. It says the prize remains unclaimed while she pursues a legal remedy to claim it anonymously since she blew the chance to name a trust as owner of the ticket. I presume if that fails she will accept the publicity along with her winnings.

That's true, that was my initial interpretation, that she might just turn it down if she can't claim it anonymously, but it wasn't actually mentioned.

 

[Car-Guy]

It's BS, she'll take it one way or another no matter what is being said now.

 

[Walt34]

I think her paranoia is a but much and overblown. Sure, someone who wins $559 million (which after taxes is really going to be a bit more than half of that) is going to be pestered a little bit but you just hire screeners and guards, if needed, to deal with that stuff for you. And that isn't going to last the rest of her life anyway, eventually the hubbub will die down, someone else will win a bigger jackpot, and she'll be all but forgotten in a few years at most.

Locally a retired sheriff won something like $10 million in the state lottery about ten years ago and he's given much, if not most of it away in community support projects, like a new gym for a school that didn't have one, an indoor community athletic center and some add-ons to the park system, stuff like that. I don't recall ever seeing an article that he was being pestered by sob stories and greedy relatives coming out of the woodwork and such.

A somewhat famous winner that did have a hard time with the lottery winnings was Jack Whittaker, who won $314.9 million in 2002. Despite already being a millionaire several times over he still managed to screw up pretty badly.

So I think it still comes down to who the person is, not who everyone else is.

 

[Texas Proud]

She may wind up taking it, but is just trying every opportunity to stay anonymous before she has to go public.

+1.... I have never read anywhere that she does NOT want the prize, only to not have her name made public...


In the end if she is stuck, I would be any amount of money she is going to take the winnings..

 

[gerntz]

Why didn't she just hand the ticket to someone else?

 

[CaptTom]

I read the story in the NH papers when it first hit. IIRC she signed the ticket on advice of the lottery agency, then read a blog by a local attorney recommending against signing it. Now she's a client of that attorney.

So my first question is whether this attorney might be playing it up a bit, for the publicity, for the money, or for the sake of building a better case. He may or may not have his client's best interests in mind.

Assuming he does (who ever heard of a dishonest lawyer?), then what he said made a lot of sense; that she wants to be able to keep her friends, walk around town without being singled out, and avoid all the negative things that come with publicity. For all we know she may have family (like kids/grandkids in school) who would be impacted.

Sure, she could hire a squadron of guards. But who wants to live in an armed camp?

I hope it'll be possible to work things out, although being able to keep her identity secret seems like a long shot.

Personally, I'd endure the publicity. A half-billion would change my life no matter what, so I'd just accept the good with the bad. I could always grow a beard and wear sunglasses if I found a sudden desire to walk around town.

 

[RunningBum]

Why didn't she just hand the ticket to someone else?

Again, I worded the thread topic poorly. She wants the money, and hasn't said she won't take the money, but just wants to be anonymous. Apparently she thought she could claim the prize anonymously, but made a poor decision in signing the ticket.

 

[Amethyst]

I think she's in shock and this is how she reacts to it. She could change her name to Alfred E. Neumann, and people who want to bother her, or are merely curious, will still figure out who won the half-billion. I bet a bunch of people already have figured it out.

 

[easysurfer]

I heard that she's spending a fortune on legal fees trying to stay anonymous.

 

[Amethyst]

I heard that she's spending a fortune on legal fees trying to stay anonymous.

Hah! All the lawyers can t stop a determined person with a little detective know-how. She has effectively set herself up as a challenge to certain types of snoop.

 

[Souschef]

There are many stories of lottery winners losing it all, be poisoned, murdered, etc. Just Google Lottery Losers.
The advice I heard was that the first thing you do is change your phone number.

 

[Senator]

With that kind of money, you can buy an island. And you do not even need a phone or mail box anymore.

 

[FiveDriver]

This poor Lady has a Major Problem that requires a 2-step solution.

1-- Claim your Winnings.

2-- Move as far away from New Hampshire as your little heart desires.

 

[marko]

If I won the lottery I would sign the ticket and take the money without hesitation. I think the concerns are over exaggerated.

There are many stories of lottery winners losing it all, be poisoned, murdered, etc. Just Google Lottery Losers.
The advice I heard was that the first thing you do is change your phone number.

My mom's cousin won a measly $5MM many years ago. He said that in hindsight it was the worst day of his life.

People accosting him on the street, hanging out in front of his house; a few becoming violent or threaten his kids when he'd ignore or turn them down. Just hundreds of requests, "sick children", sob stories and so on. I'd guess that $500MM would only magnify the mess.

 

[gauss]

Yes, I have heard that you don't want to sign the ticket until you understand the legal ramifications. On the other hand, the ticket is a negotiable instrument, payable to bearer, until someone signs it. As such, perhaps best to put into a trusted bank safe deposit box.

I haven't studied the details, but I suspect creating some type of LLC to claim the winnings may be a possible way to go.

-gauss

edit: I wonder what the statute of limitations is to claim the prize or forfeit it if not claimed.

 

[gauss]

My mom's cousin won a measly $5MM many years ago. He said that in hindsight it was the worst day of his life.

People accosting him on the street, hanging out in front of his house; a few becoming violent or threaten his kids when he'd ignore or turn them down. Just hundreds of requests, "sick children", sob stories and so on. I'd guess that $500MM would only magnify the mess.

Wow $5M is not that much IMHO. Did this sort of stalking behavior stop after a couple of months?

-gauss

 

[exnavynuke]

In Georgia you aren't allowed to claim anonymously (no trust either). That might be changing soon as a new law is going through. In fact, according to one article, only 8 states allow you to claim winnings anonymously.