What Jimmy Buffett’s Unintended $275M Mistake Can Teach Us

Hi, Tom here.

Welcome to another week of tmrw.

We’ve got some great things in store this week. Jacob and I went deep on Figma’s IPO, luxury credit cards, and Jimmy Buffett’s estate on this week’s Wealth Workshop.

This week’s edition is all about estate planning and the tragic lessons unfolding in real time. Jimmy Buffett’s longtime wife, Jane, and his business advisor, Richard Mozenter, are now in court fighting over his $275 million estate.

It’s a heartbreaking story and a reminder that your estate plan is only as strong as the people involved.

Let’s dive in.

Watch this week’s Wealth Workshop:

Each week, we break down what’s happening in the world, how it affects your money, and what to do next.

This week: the lessons buried inside Jimmy Buffett’s $275 million estate battle.

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There's trouble in Margaritaville.

Jimmy Buffett passed away two years ago, but his $275 million estate is still in turmoil.

His wife of 47 years, Jane Buffett, is asking a Florida court to remove a former advisor and accountant, Rick Mozenter, as trustee of a marital trust established in 1990. They’re already in litigation in California.

It’s public. And deeply sad.

Jimmy and Jane Buffett were married for 47 years. They raised three children and built a life that looked like a dream, exactly what Margaritaville was meant to be.

Only 24 months after Jimmy’s passing, that dream is unraveling in court. What should have been a private legacy is now a public legal nightmare. His widow is fighting for control over the trust he set up to protect her.

You might not have $275 million at stake but the same mistakes can shred your family and everything you’ve worked to build.

Here’s why we’re talking about this: when new readers join the tmrw community, we ask what matters most to them. Two things rise to the top:

1. Producing more retirement income – you want to generate more income from what you’ve built

2. Having an airtight estate plan – you don’t want to leave your family with a legal mess that drags on for years

What’s happening in Margaritaville is a cautionary tale. The wrong structure, or the wrong people, can turn a thoughtful estate plan into a drawn out drama.

Let’s break it down.

Estate Planning can become extremely complex.

Let’s just get that out of the way. Because it’s true.

Even with a will and trust, things can go sideways. As your wealth grows, so does the complexity. Add in blended families, unclear documents, or the wrong people in key roles, and you’ve got a recipe for conflict.

I just sat down with my estate planner yesterday with my wife, and even for us, the number of variables was dizzying. It’s not just about the structure of the trust. It’s about the people involved. The bigger the plan, the more room there is for something to go wrong.

This is what we’re watching unfold with Buffett’s estate.

Disputes over money often cause more lasting damage than any other family conflict. Why? Because inheritances are rare events. You only get one chance. Whether it’s from selling a business or receiving a large estate, the money comes fast, and the emotions come faster.

Here’s what we know about Buffett’s setup:

He worked with an advisor to create a marital trust in 1990. That trust likely held a significant portion of his estate and was meant to protect Jane and their kids. This kind of structure is sometimes called an “A/B trust” — where assets are split into two portions to minimize taxes and protect beneficiaries.

Jimmy probably understood two key things in 1990:

1. Margaritaville was going to be extremely profitable

2. That success could trigger estate tax issues and family drama

So he built a plan to get ahead of it.

Let's look inside his estate:

• $34.5M in real property

• $15M in equity in Strange Bird Inc.

• $2M in music equipment

• $5M in vehicles

• $12M in “other investments”

• $85M in Margaritaville

Buffett also set up trusts for each of his three children. Jane appears to own their personal real estate. She’s now alleging the $275M trust is being mismanaged. According to court documents, Rick Mozenter projected the trust would earn $2M in income but collected $1.7M in fees.

Both sides are digging in.

This is not a minor misunderstanding. There are multiple lawsuits, and Jane and Rick are fighting over control of the assets. It’s painful to watch, especially knowing Jimmy and Jane were married for 47 years.

You don’t stay married that long without love, respect, and trust.

What’s happening now would be heartbreaking for Jimmy to see.

Let’s get some questions out of the way.

"Was this a mistake to have this trust set up?"
Yes and No. The trust structure likely saved the family millions in estate taxes. The irony is they're now going to spend substantial amounts on legal fees. The emotional toll will be great. This wasn't what Jimmy wanted.

"Why wasn't Jane the sole trustee of their own trust?"
With a marital trust, you need an independent trustee to fully benefit from the structure. Jimmy likely deeply trusted Jane and Rick, in different ways. The problem: they don't trust each other, and Jimmy can do nothing about it. A trust without trust breaks down.

"How is it possible that a $275M estate only generates $2M net in income?"
It's easy to assume the $275M in assets are sitting in a Schwab account earning passive income. But a lot of those assets above cost money to own. They consume cash and the trust needs to pay for them. The Margaritaville holdings paid out $14M in distributions but that cash was used for taxes, professional fees, and maintenance costs. Taxes and professional fees alone cost $7M+ a year.

"What could they have done different?"
The trust design wasn’t the issue. The trustee choice was. Jimmy likely believed Rick was the right person. But this kind of decision should be revisited every few years — especially if the relationship dynamics change.

So what can you do to avoid this?

1. Review your estate plan with your estate attorney.

2. Have the trustee conversation with your spouse if this is applicable to you, then have this conversation every year or so. This is not a set it and forget it issue.

3. Document your thinking — not just instructions, but why you’re making certain decisions. You don’t want your kids or spouse guessing what you intended. Give them clarity now, not confusion later.

This story is deeply troubling.

It’s easy to look at someone with $275 million and think, “must be nice.” But it doesn’t take much to look in the mirror and ask, “what if that was me?”

I hate that we know this much about Jimmy and Jane’s private life. It’s all over the internet. And none of it can be undone. The plan is unraveling in court.

And that’s the real point.

Estate planning isn’t just about taxes or how much you’re worth.
It’s about what happens to the people you love when you’re no longer here.

From what I’ve seen over the years, most people want the same things:

• A spouse who is cared for

• Children who understand the plan

• A transition that feels calm and fair, not chaotic and painful

But that kind of outcome doesn’t happen by default. It takes clarity. It takes intention. And it takes many honest conversations.

If I could offer one piece of advice this week, it would be this:
Communicate.

Have the conversation. Sit down with your spouse. Talk through the plan with your attorney and your advisor. Do it while trust is intact. Do it while you're here to answer questions.

Because if you don’t, someone else will be left to figure it out.
And that person might be hurt, confused, or angry.

In the Buffett family’s case, the whole world is now hearing what went wrong.
The accusations. The grief. The spending. The silence.

It didn’t have to be this way.

Thanks for reading this week.

Tom

PS. If you want a second opinion on your estate plan — especially if it involves a trust, a business, or multiple heirs — we’re happy to walk you through it. Let’s have a conversation.