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Judge rules Washington lottery winners can't be anonymous
Just Guru to You! United States Member #91 January 19, 2002 5295 Posts Offline
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| Posted: October 4, 2008, 9:38 am - IP Logged |
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That they hired an attorney demonstrates that they clearly knew ahead of time that the law didn't allow them to remain anonymous, so they were simply subjected to the rules they already knew were in place. They had plenty of options to remain anonymous anyway. They could have donated the ticket to charity or goiven it to a friend or relative who could have given them gifts later on. They obviously decided that they'd rather have the money even if it mean they couldn't be anonymous. They still have the option of moving somewhere else.
Interesting that the story is over 1000 words long, mentions that the prize is "thought to be a local record," but still failed to say how much they won. I believe they won 6.6 million (first line top of page) "Everybody has to believe in something...I believe I'll have another beer!" = W.C.Fields
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United States Member #13375 March 30, 2005 1112 Posts Offline
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| Posted: October 4, 2008, 11:17 am - IP Logged |
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what gets me is in the same forum there is tbhis thread
http://www.lotterypost.com/news/181247
is that an earlier news item of same story? because it has me confused one is anonymous and now this article says not allowed to be anonymous in washington That's what I thought of, too. I couldn't find it through the forum search though . Used a search engine.
Incorporating and such, bah. - Seems to me a way of keeping the lawyers in business. People shouldn't have to jump through those kinds of legal hoops to maintain their privacy. After the Lindberg Baby case, no 'official' should ever be allowed to say "No one could have seen it coming." Prince of Insufficient Light ~ Ruler of Heck
"The Earth moves around the Sun." -- some 'crazy' guy, 1632
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Washington State United States Member #34373 February 26, 2006 266 Posts Offline
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| Posted: October 4, 2008, 11:27 am - IP Logged |
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I guess the winners in that article were smarter in their approach. Instead of fighting to claim the prize normally and stay anonymous, the people in the article you linked to formed a corporation and had the corporation claim the prize. Those people did not waste tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees trying to fight the system. They worked within the system to achieve their goal.
But how is it any smarter to form a corporation than to form a trust? The winners of the $6.6 million formed a trust. Here is the way it was listed on the winners page on the Washington State lottery website:
$6.6 MILLION LIVING TRUST BNA REVOCABLE, November 13, 2007, Yakima Region.
APPLE BIN SHELL, 3707 W NOB HILL BLVD, YAKIMA.
I personally think it is now questionable whether the winners of the more recent jackpot who formed the corporation will be able to retain their anonymity.
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New Member Federal Way United States Member #56067 October 9, 2007 4 Posts Offline
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| Posted: October 4, 2008, 11:29 am - IP Logged |
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ONLY in Washington State right now would this happen... Mainly due to the current Governor that is in office. SHe has allowed so many wrong doings to go on, just wondering if perhaps she is getting some type of kick back off this as well as all the others that you hear about. If the REAL Governor was in office (DINO) this never would have been allowed to happen. This si the only state I am aware of that you cannot remain anonymous when you win a lottery. If I ever do win, I do not want people to know it, because you will get people coming out of the wood work asking for money. Or even sueing you, saying you promised them money. Or even like the one person said, kidnapping, murder and what ever else is in those sick minds. The judge definately be held liable for anything that happens due to his stupidity. I think we need to RE-ELECT DINO ROSSI..... "You cannot win, if you do not play....."
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Chief Bottle Washer New Jersey United States Member #1 May 31, 2000 15564 Posts Online
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| Posted: October 4, 2008, 2:04 pm - IP Logged |
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That's what I thought of, too. I couldn't find it through the forum search though . Used a search engine.
Incorporating and such, bah. - Seems to me a way of keeping the lawyers in business. People shouldn't have to jump through those kinds of legal hoops to maintain their privacy. After the Lindberg Baby case, no 'official' should ever be allowed to say "No one could have seen it coming." Um, you could always check the "Related Stories" box inside the news story.
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Idaho United States Member #56982 November 21, 2007 1866 Posts Offline
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| Posted: October 4, 2008, 2:05 pm - IP Logged |
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These jackpot winners act like they are the only rich people in America. Thousands (or more) people in the U.S. are multi-millionaires and while they may face certain unique problems from people wanting a piece of their fortune, they manage to do just fine in their lives.
Heck, I would think these people would send their kids to private schools now anyway. Plus they can hire all the extra security they want.
Don't play the lottery if you don't want a little temporary publicity! People can want a change without having to stop playing the lottery. There is nothing wrong with trying to change the system. Also, coming into millions of dollars and earning it slowly is totally different. For some reason, some people think that it is ok to harass or beg lottery winners for their money because it wasn't really earned. So no, I don't see it as being the same.
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Chief Bottle Washer New Jersey United States Member #1 May 31, 2000 15564 Posts Online
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| Posted: October 4, 2008, 2:07 pm - IP Logged |
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But how is it any smarter to form a corporation than to form a trust? The winners of the $6.6 million formed a trust. Here is the way it was listed on the winners page on the Washington State lottery website:
$6.6 MILLION LIVING TRUST BNA REVOCABLE, November 13, 2007, Yakima Region.
APPLE BIN SHELL, 3707 W NOB HILL BLVD, YAKIMA.
I personally think it is now questionable whether the winners of the more recent jackpot who formed the corporation will be able to retain their anonymity.
I did not compare a trust to a corporation. I am not an attorney and would never say which is better for any particular person. I compared claiming the prize as "Joe Citizen" vs. claiming as a corp.
Also, I don't see anything here that impacts the corporation that claimed the previous jackpot. You are comparing apples and oranges.
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Chief Bottle Washer New Jersey United States Member #1 May 31, 2000 15564 Posts Online
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| Posted: October 4, 2008, 2:09 pm - IP Logged |
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People can want a change without having to stop playing the lottery. There is nothing wrong with trying to change the system. Also, coming into millions of dollars and earning it slowly is totally different. For some reason, some people think that it is ok to harass or beg lottery winners for their money because it wasn't really earned. So no, I don't see it as being the same.

People have every right to try to protect themselves from thieves, credit hounds, and unscrupulous service providers.
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NY United States Member #24178 October 16, 2005 1471 Posts Offline
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| Posted: October 4, 2008, 8:44 pm - IP Logged |
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But how is it any smarter to form a corporation than to form a trust? The winners of the $6.6 million formed a trust. Here is the way it was listed on the winners page on the Washington State lottery website:
$6.6 MILLION LIVING TRUST BNA REVOCABLE, November 13, 2007, Yakima Region.
APPLE BIN SHELL, 3707 W NOB HILL BLVD, YAKIMA.
I personally think it is now questionable whether the winners of the more recent jackpot who formed the corporation will be able to retain their anonymity.
It was smarter (or maybe just luckier) to use a corporation because the lottery doesn't seem to have an interest in releasing the names of the actual people who are receiving the money, at least so far. As you say, it's possible that th elottery will now want to release the names os the people behind the corporation. Since the corporation and the trust are both legal entities, I'm not sure why there is a disparity in how they are treated. If the rules require that the name of a natural person must be released when claiming a lottery prize it shouldn't matter whether those persons claimed through a trust or a corporation. If the rules only say that the name of the claimant must be released, it seems that the name of a trust should suffice. Since the judge is quoted as saying the public has a right to know the real people behind the trust, it's certainly possible that the lottery could decide they want to release the names of those benefitting from the corporation. Even if the lottery doesn't press the issue it's possible that a FOIA request from the press could result in the same thing.
I wonder if the winners shot themselves in the foot by getting the injunction and seeking a court case. If they had simply formed the trust and claimed as the trust, perhaps the lottery would simply have listed the name of the trust and left it at that.
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Australia Member #37542 April 11, 2006 276 Posts Offline
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| Posted: October 5, 2008, 12:13 am - IP Logged |
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thanks ky floyd,
thats the crux of why i posted, what was the difference between the successful annononymous claim a few weeks earlier , and thiis claim.
I think the trick is to follow the correct proccedure. i look at all lotteries as a 50-50 chance,
either i win or i don't
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