Only HALF of New York Holocaust survivor’s $40m fortune remains after he died unmarried and childless in 2013 – and lawyers and taxes have eaten away at his estate

A search for relatives is ongoing for property mogul and Holocaust survivor, Roman Blum, who passed away in January 2012 without a will. His wife predeceased him and the couple had no children. However, a descendant of one of Blum’s long lost loves has come forward to claim a “secret will” exists, despite not being formally filed. The validity of the document is currently being investigated.

Blum left behind a $40 million dollar fortune, which has slowly been whittled down by taxes and attorney fees and many people have attempted to claim their share. The estate included $4 million in cash in a checking account, a home in Staten Island worth $729,000, undeveloped land worth $4.5 million, and a safe deposit box which contained 7,000 $100 bills.

Friends have speculated why Blum, who was 97 at the time of his death, did not leave behind a will. He was an intelligent man with an enormous fortune and some believe he simply refused to admit his mortality. 

For more information see James Gordon “Only HALF of New York Holocaust survivor’s $40m fortune remains after he died unmarried and childless in 2013— and lawyers and taxes have eaten away at his estate”, The Daily Mail, December 17, 2022

Special thanks to Joel C. Dobris (Professor of Law, UC Davis School of Law) for bringing this article to my attention.

https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/trusts_estates_prof/2022/12/only-half-of-new-york-holocaust-survivors-40m-fortune-remains-after-he-died-unmarried-and-childless-.html