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For decades, people have told different stories about what John Lennon’s two sons inherited. This month, one of them tried to settle it.
“Julian and I inherited the same amount from our dad. Our trusts were equal,” Sean Ono Lennon wrote on X, adding that Julian’s was “slightly more, but negligibly so,” The Daily Beast reported Oct. 12. (1)
He was answering political commentator Wesley Yang, who had claimed that one brother inherited most of the estate while the other had to fight for a smaller share. (1)(2)
Why does that story have legs? Julian challenged the estate after being omitted from his father’s will, according to estate-litigation attorney Michael A. Hackard, as cited by The Daily Beast. (1)
The dispute lasted 16 years before it was settled with Yoko Ono in 1996, Hola reported. The terms were never publicly disclosed, though reports have put the settlement at about £20 million. (1)(2)
John Lennon left an estimated $200 million fortune, Hola reported. (2) Most families are working with a lot less. But the lesson is the same at any size: when kids aren’t sure they were treated fairly, they can end up fighting, and the lawyers get paid.
And an “equal” plan is easier to break than most people think. The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, which oversees brokerage firms, warns that the beneficiary forms on your accounts “typically override instructions in your will.” (3)
I was the executor of my parents’ estate, and I’ve been a CPA since 1981. Here are 5 ways to make sure your kids never have to argue about what you meant.
1. Never leave a child out without saying so, in writing
A child who’s left out of a will may wonder whether it was a mistake. If you’re treating children differently on purpose, say so plainly in your will or trust, and have an estate attorney draft it.
That’s my advice, not a legal rule. But a short, clear explanation, written while you’re alive and thinking clearly, is a lot harder to argue with than silence.
2. Your beneficiary forms can undo an “equal” will
Here’s a mistake that’s easy to make. You write a will that splits everything equally, and then an old form on your IRA or life insurance policy sends the money somewhere else.
FINRA also warns that certain assets “pass directly to named beneficiaries regardless of what your will states.” (3)
So pull out every beneficiary form you’ve signed, including those for retirement accounts and life insurance. Make sure they match the plan you want.
If you don’t have a plan on paper yet, that’s the place to start.
Without a plan, state law and a probate court decide who gets what, probate can drag on for months, and loved ones are left guessing. Shield them with a will, a trust or both.
A will spells out who gets what. You can get one in minutes for $199. A trust goes further, controlling how and when heirs inherit. Those start at just $499.
3. Decide whether lifetime gifts count
Equal on paper isn’t always equal in your kids’ eyes. If you helped one child with a down payment or paid off another’s student loans, decide now whether that counts against their share, and write it down.
For 2026, the annual exclusion for gifts is $19,000 per recipient, according to the IRS. (4) Whatever you give, keep records, so your executor isn’t left guessing.
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4. Worry less about estate tax and more about family
For people who die in 2026, the federal estate tax basic exclusion is $15 million per person, according to the IRS. (4) If your estate is well under that, the federal estate tax likely won’t touch it, although some states also have estate taxes.
But for most of us, the real risk isn’t the IRS or the state. It’s a confused family and a long fight. Spend your planning energy there.
5. Talk to your kids while you can still answer questions
Sean Lennon is in his 50s and still answering questions about his father’s estate in public. Don’t leave your kids to piece it together after you’re gone.
Tell them who your executor or trustee is, where the documents are and, in general terms, how you’ve divided things. They don’t have to like every decision. But hearing it from you, with your reasons, takes a lot of the heat out of it.
If your estate is complicated, with retirement accounts, a home, a business, and large amounts, it can pay to have a professional look at the whole picture, including the tax side.
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My honest take
Equal isn’t the only fair way to divide an estate. Sometimes a parent has good reasons to do something else.
But whatever you decide, decide it on paper, make every form match and explain it to your kids. Sean Lennon’s point wasn’t really about the dollars. It was that he could say, publicly, that he and his brother were treated the same.
That’s what every parent should want their kids to be able to say.
Sources: 1. The Daily Beast; 2. Hola; 3. FINRA; 4. Internal Revenue Service
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