The new Netflix movie, The Life List, is more than just the average romantic comedy. The movie raises a host of interesting legal questions from an estate planning perspective—can a Will condition inheritance on an heir falling in love? Is a digital or video Will valid under New York law?
The movie, released on March 28, 2025, is based on the book written by Lori Nelson Spielman, and centers on the character, Alex Rose, who is left with some unique requirements she must meet to inherit from her mother’s estate.
For Alex to inherit her share of the estate, she must complete a twelve-item “life bucket list” which Alex had written for herself when she was 13 years old. Her mother’s intention in conditioning Alex’s inheritance on completing the list was to inspire Alex to find herself again and follow the dreams that she had since abandoned.
During the formal Will reading (a neat Hollywood dramatic device which is rarely employed in real life), Alex is handed a DVD prerecorded by her mother, outlining the conditions for receiving her inheritance. As Alex checks items off the list, she reports back to the estate attorney to receive additional DVD videos recorded by her mom.
Some of the items on Alex’s list include learning to drive, pursuing her dreams as a teacher, performing stand-up comedy, learning to play Clair de Lune on piano, getting a tattoo, and, of course, finding true love. While seemingly a fun Hollywood adventure following Alex as she rediscovers herself (and finds true love), the journey to her inheritance raises questions as to whether this can be done in real life.
In “real-life” estate planning, parents often have big dreams for their children, or in contrast, reservations about their child’s ability to manage a substantial inheritance. As a result, parents may wish to restrict their child’s inheritance to some degree. A parent may stipulate in their Will (or Trust) that their children reach a certain age, complete a specific level of schooling, or remain sober for a set period of time before being allowed to receive their full inheritance.
Most of the time, these types of restrictions are within legal limits. However, conditions for inheritance are only permitted if they do not violate public policy.
In true rom-com fashion, the requirement of “Finding True Love” is the obvious overarching goal. However, this type of restriction on inheritance is typically not permitted in real life.
Conditioning inheritance on marriage, relationships, or love, is usually against public policy. A parent (or anyone else) cannot condition inheritance on their child marrying within a certain religion, getting married by a certain age, or on their child divorcing their spouse; and a parent certainly cannot condition inheritance on abstractly “finding true love.”
In addition, complying with Will formalities is a large component of creating a valid Will. In New York, for a Will to be duly executed it must be in writing, signed at the end of the document, and witnessed. New York law does not recognize digital or video recorded Wills. Instead, a person’s final wishes must be written in their Will, and cannot include unreasonable conditions.
A parent may add language to their Will that expresses their “hope” or “desire” that their child achieves certain accomplishments or uses their inheritance for a specific purpose, but ultimately, they cannot condition the inheritance to be distributed or used in any way that violates public policy, and cannot express these wishes through a video.
Overall, the movie may bring up a variety of legal questions, but just as with any movie or TV show, take the specific legalities with a grain of salt.
The best way to ensure your wishes are properly carried out after you die, is by checking “estate planning” off your own personal life list.
Helen Tuckman is an attorney in Vishnick McGovern Milizio LLP’s Wills, Trusts, and Estates practice. Her work focuses on Trust and Estate Planning, Trust and Estate Administration, Elder Law, and Special Needs Planning. She can be reached at htuckman@vmmlegal.com and 516.437.4385.
