Not an estate planning post, but more of a public service announcement in the financial arena. Lori Sattler is an acting NY Supreme Court Judge. In the process of selling an apartment and buying another one, she followed the instructions in an email supposedly from her attorney and wire transferred $1 million to a fraudulent account which then wired the money to a bank in China. The money is long gone.

Several points of varying interest:

1. When transferring $1 million, it makes sense to verbally confirm the instructions regarding the wire transfer.

2. It has been a tough month for judges in NY between this judge getting scammed and the Court of Appeals justice who died with an outdated will that contained deceased beneficiaries and ignored her husband.

3. Perhaps Judge Sattler can commiserate with John Podesta at a Democratic fundraiser about the travails of falling for a link in an email.

Photo Credit:  AP/File

License:  Fair Use/Education