Southern California estate planning attorney Samuel B. Ledwitz explains what do to if you actually win the lottery

TORRANCE, Calif., Jan. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- With several recent Power Ball jackpots cashing out at more than $300 million, it might be interesting to know what to do just in case your luck ever pays off in an extremely big way.

And since the amount of money up for grabs is unfathomable to most, it is safe to say probably 99 percent of the public has no idea on what steps to initially take to ensure the money is properly invested, kept out of the hands of the wrong people and just not squandered.

Luckily, Samuel B. Ledwitz, a longtime estate planning attorney in Southern California, thought the same thing. Ledwitz then came up with a comprehensive guide of what to do if you find yourself in the winner's seat, everything ranging from what to actually do with the winning ticket to how to prepare to pay income tax from the winnings to what could possibly go wrong.

A comprehensive guide on what to do if you win the lottery can be found at https://smartestateplans.com/lottery/, with the first three items being listed here.

So, here's what should be done first. You need to sign the back of the ticket to ensure you are the owner of the ticket. And the fine folks at the lottery are going to want to tell your good fortune to the rest of the world. I can't stress this enough: You want to do the least amount of public interaction that is legally required.

This is because there are scam artists out there who already have you at a disadvantage the moment you win the lottery. A legal search of public records that only takes a few minutes and people can learn more about you than you think, possibly using this information to gain an inroad with you to get to your newly found wealth.

In addition, they will go on social media and they will find a picture of you, your family, your pets and learn everything there is to know about you.

As such, before you claim your prize, you will want to obtain a new phone number, obtain private security for you and your family, find a safe place to live for the moment (not your current place of residence where everybody scam artist and reporter will be), hire a seasoned lawyer, prepare a place to transfer the money (think a bank or investment firm), hire a certified public account, banker, financial planner and other professionals.

This is all because privacy is the main asset that you can have.

So, what can you expect when you come forward and claim your prize? First, the lottery folks are very nice and professional. Of course, they will congratulate you and make you feel comfortable. They will ask you the story of how you came to have the ticket, how you paid for it, the store that you bought it from, your identification and your Social Security Number.

The California lottery has a police department and their people are called "Lottery Investigators." They will check to see if you have any outstanding taxes, child support payments, outstanding warrants for your arrest, etc. They will check to see if the ticket is real and that you obtained it legally.

You have one year in California to collect the big prize from Mega Millions and Power Ball. Do not be late in collecting your winnings because you will lose your money. The unclaimed winnings will go to the California Department of Education. This has happened several times to lottery winners.

And the next thing to do is simple: keep the ticket safe. Make several copies of the winning ticket and only take the copies around to your professionals' offices (and make sure every signs a Non Disclosure Agreement). I would highly suggest that you put the winning ticket in a safe deposit box before you claim the prize.

However, although I believe banks are very safe, I do have one personal note to make. Do not have a safe deposit box that is close to the floor – although it is highly unlikely that a bank is going to catch fire, if it does, the water pools at the bottom of the building will ruin the contents in the boxes nearest the floor.

In addition, do NOT use a fire proof safe at home. A motivated thief will just steal the safe and drill it later. Also, you have to understand how a fire proof safe works. It is rated to withstand a certain amount of heat for a certain amount of time; however, to save the contents inside the safe, it has a material that releases water vapor to keep the safe cool on the inside. This means that water is coming into contact with your precious ticket and destroying it whether or not it burns up.

Samuel B. Ledwitz is a licensed California Attorney that holds the designation as a State Bar Certified Specialist in Estate Planning, Trust and Probate Law. Attorney Ledwitz also possesses an advanced law degree (LL.M. in Estate Planning) from the University of Miami School of law. Furthermore, he is a Real Estate Broker, Notary and Life Insurance Agent. He is also a former armed security officer and locksmith. In addition, he teaches an estate planning class at a local college and is a former high school substitute schoolteacher. He has a unique perspective on this topic. His law firm has helped three lottery winners and one Indian Reservation Slot machine winner with various aspects of their estate planning.

Media Contact

Samuel Ledwitz, Bezaire, Ledwitz and Associates, APC, +1 (310) 3162400, samuel@ledwitzlaw.com

SOURCE Bezaire, Ledwitz and Associates, APC