I almost missed the news, probably because it didn’t get the publicity of the original court decision. Funny how that happens sometimes. Not that news media would ever show a particular bias…

Last year I commented on a court overturning a father’s will. He had disinherited one of his daughters because he disapproved of her interracial relationship.

Much as I deplored his racism, I defended his right to choose how he disposed of his worldly possessions. I felt it was not within the jurisdiction of a court to overturn his wishes if the paperwork was in order. The court obviously disagreed.

There are limitations as to who you can make a beneficiary in your will, exceptions clearly set out in law and precedent. I can leave my money to the SPCA. I can’t leave it to ISIS. But those limitations are rare, and rightly so. And I am pleased to see that a higher court has agreed with me and overturned last year’s ruling. Though I am sure there will be yet another appeal. There is money at stake and people frequently lose perspective when money is involved.

Freedom of thought and belief is supposedly our first freedom. It ties in with free speech and is not one that should be abridged lightly. Shouting “fire” in a crowded theatre, just to see what happens, is not permitted (unless of course there really is a fire). Freedom carries with it responsibility. A lot of people seem to miss that part.

In the case in question, the man’s racism, if indeed that was the cause of his choice to disinherit, did not cause harm to society. You could even argue it did not harm the daughter who would no longer receive a share of the estate. After all, she didn’t have it when he was alive, so it was only a potential benefit. If she had been counting her chickens before they were hatched, that is her responsibility. (I understand this from first-hand experience. What would have been my inheritance was spent on chemotherapy for a cat. I have no complaints, though I don’t think it was the wisest allocation of funds. The cat did, after all, eventually die. And I wasn’t assuming an inheritance)

I am pleased therefore that the courts have returned some sort of sanity to this situation. Who knows, maybe the family members can work something out and there will be no further appeal. But probably not. If that was going to happen things wouldn’t have gotten this far. And as usual, the only real winners are the lawyers.