1. Describe a situation where someone you know (or a celebrity other than Prince) died without a will or without a plan for his or her estate.If you are using a celebrity example, you will need to research this issue to find more information about the celebrity.
2. Using the rules of intestate succession inCalifornia at California Probate Code Section 6400 sections 6401 and 6402(Links to an external site.)
3. how is person or celebrity's estate going to distributed because they did not have a will?This part of the discussion requires you to read the sections of the Probate Code and to apply the rules set forth in the Probate Code to the person or celebrity's situation.

7 legendary stars who died without wills: Aretha Franklin, Prince and more

Stars dying without wills?It's a notion that's difficult to grasp, particularly when musicians'estates often continueto generate significant revenue after their deaths.

Yet in some cases, famous faces werejust like a lotof us, and despite their millions, put shoring up their financeson the back burner. Aretha Franklin mayhave been the latest star to pass away without a trust or will, withher four sonsfiling a document this weekin Michigan's Oakland County Probate Courtlisting themselves as interested parties in her estate, while her niece Sabrina Owens asked the court to appoint her as personal representative of the estate.

We don't yet know the fallout of Franklin's financial scenario,but here's a look at celebrities who died without wills in place - and the dramas that ensued.

More:Aretha Franklin didn't leave a will; here's what will happen to her estate

Column:Aretha Franklin didn't have a will, but you should: How to get one

Prince

Age at the time ofdeath:57

Financial status:The singer died April 21, 2016, in an elevator in his Paisley Park compound, and in the absence of his will,scores of claimants emerged, claiming to be his previously-unknown wife, child, sibling or distant relative. After months of legal drama, the Minnesota probate judge overseeing the late Prince's estatedeclared in May 2017that Prince did in fact die without a will, and thathis sister, Tyka Nelson, and five half-siblings are the heirs to the multiple millions of dollars he left behind. Court filings suggest Prince's estate is worth around $200 million, perhaps more depending on the value of his musical legacy andhis famous "vault" of unreleased recordings, though federal and state estate taxes are expected to consume about half the value.

Carver County District Judge Kevin Eide saidthat multiple would-be heirs to Prince's estate, whose claims of heirship were rejected, have filed appeals, and that nothing will be distributed that might adversely affect the claims of those with pending appeals, or without a formal court order.

More:Prince's six siblings declared official heirs to his still-uncounted estate

Michael Jackson

Age at the time ofdeath:50

Financial status:Jackson'sfamily initially thought he didn't have a will, and headed to court. Eventually, courtesy of his lawyers, a will surfaced,signed seven years before the pop star's death. Upon its discovery, momKatherine Jackson withdrew her petition asking to be put in charge of her son's estate.

Jackson's will namedthe pop star's longtime attorney John Branca and music executive John McClain as administrators of the estate.Katherine Jackson was named as a permanent guardian to her son's three children,Prince Michael I,Parisand Prince Michael II. She was also nameda beneficiary of a trust set up by her son.Singer Diana Ross was named a successor guardian for the children and their estates.

But it's not over.According to Forbes, it may be another year before a final resolution in the estate tax case related to a discrepancy in the value of the late singer's name and likeness. The slog through tax court has been going on for five years already.