Two notable names were shockingly absent from Naomi Judd's final will and testament: her daughters Wynonna and Ashley Judd. According to a copy of the will and testament obtained by NBC News, the late country singer appointed her husband, Larry Strickland, as the executor of her estate.
Judd and Strickland had been married for 33 years at the time of her death. According to the will, she granted full authority and discretion over any property left in her estate to Strickland. The document added that Strickland will not need the approval of any court or beneficiary to deal with Judd's assets.
If for any reason Strickland is unable to serve as the estate's executor, Judd named Wiatr & Associates President Daniel Kris Wiatr and her husband's brother, Reginald Strickland, as the co-executors of her estate.
Naomi Judd died by suicide this past April
Judd prepared the will on November 20, 2017. Two witnesses, Abigail Muelder and Melissa Sitzler, signed a sworn affidavit that Judd was of sound mind, memory and understanding, and not under any restraint or in any respect incompetent when making her Last Will and Testament.
Naomi Judd died on April 30 by suicide at age 76, nearly five years after she prepared her will, according to People Magazine. She passed away just one day before the Judds, the top-selling country music duo she performed in alongside her daughter Wynonna, were set to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
Wynonna and Ashley tearfully accepted the award on behalf of the Judds, and honored their mom in their acceptance speech.
Judd naming husband as executor of her will is not uncommon
A legal expert told Page Six that Judd's decision to name her husband as the executor of her will is not uncommon, but may be perceived as a slight to her daughters Wynonna and Ashley. Attorney Holly Davis said it is common to name the spouse as the executor of a will but leaving out her daughters seems pointed, like a purposeful act on Naomi's part.
Criminal defense attorney Jason Goldman said the country superstar was likely advised to pick her husband over her two daughters because it would be cleaner and less contentious. He explained that despite having the opposite intent, wills typically become notoriously difficult to interpret when overly specific.
He added that when factoring in the existence of numerous children, a longer, divided will is inevitably a recipe for misinterpretation and disaster. It is unclear if Wynonna or Ashley are beneficiaries to any of their mom's assets since their names were not mentioned at all in the will.
Goldman clarified, however, that this does not confirm or deny whether the two sisters have trusts that were set up by their mother prior to her death. The New York-based lawyer said the will itself did not mention Naomi's hard assets, which may have already been bestowed upon the children through title transfers.
