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survivorship to Bell and himself, and (8) decedent asked Bell to
serve on a committee that was created to make decisions about his
medical care in the event that he was unable to do so.
Bell and decedent had a loving relationship. They never
married. Decedent also established a close relationship with
Bell's family. In the will, decedent left cash bequests to
several members of Bell's family.
The Ledgers
Decedent was a meticulous record keeper who maintained
handwritten journals of his personal expenditures (the ledgers).
In the ledgers, decedent recorded the checks he wrote, showing
the payee and classifying the payment by purpose (e.g., “Cash”
and “Travel exp.”). One classification is variously labeled
“Rose Exp.”, “RAB Exp.” or something similar, and refers to
payments to or with respect to Bell (the Bell payments). When
decedent became too old to maintain the ledgers personally,
Bell's daughter-in-law, Carol Bell, maintained them at decedent's
direction. Bell never made any entries in the ledgers.
The Bell Payments
The Bell payments commenced in 1986 or earlier and continued
until the time of decedent’s death. The Bell payments were made
from a checking account of decedent’s (the checking account).
Bell enjoyed a power of attorney to write checks on the checking
account. During the last 2 years of decedent's life, Bell wrote
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Last modified: May 25, 2011