The Ultimate Controlling Parent: Calling the Shots From Beyond the Grave

"Where there's a will, there's a way," the saying goes, but according to estate lawyers and inheritance specialists with whom WalletPop spoke recently, a more accurate version of that adage might be, "Where there's a will, there's a relative holding onto the purse strings in the afterlife."

Inheritances and the trusts through which they're often distributed are rife with conditions the beneficiary must meet if they want to get those assets. For these unfortunate survivors, they're faced with the prospect of a parent or other loved one controlling their life from beyond the grave.

"I've seen required drug tests, or no distributions paid out until the beneficiary gets a Ph.D. It can go on and on," says Myra Salzer, right, founder of The Wealth Conservancy.