NASHUA, N.H. — A New Hampshire woman who hit this month's $560 million Powerball jackpot asked a judge Monday to keep her identity secret.
Represented by the law firm Shaheen & Gordon in Concord, the winner of the Jan. 6 lottery drawing says her privacy is at risk because of "a huge mistake."
Identifying herself only as Jane Doe, the winner says she wrote out her name on the back of the ticket she bought from Reed's Ferry Market in a panic to secure it.
Though she had merely been following the directions of the New Hampshire Lottery Commission, Doe says an attorney advised her shortly thereafter that she could create a trust to collect her winnings anonymously.
Now that the ticket is signed, Doe's privacy options are limited. Under New Hampshire's Right to Know law, the Lottery Commission will be forced to disclose records identifying the winner if a request for such information is filed.
Such requests are common after any drawing, the commission disclosed, to say nothing of the fact that the jackpot at issue is the seventh-highest in lotto history.
Charlie McIntyre, executive director of the state lottery, says their hands are tied.
"While we respect this player's desire to remain anonymous, state statutes and lottery rules clearly dictate protocols," McIntyre said in a statement.
McIntyre conceded that a $560 million Powerball jackpot can change the winner's life, but said the procedures at issue were put in place "for the security and integrity of the lottery, our players and our games."
"After consulting with the New Hampshire Attorney General's Office on this matter, we have been advised that the lottery must proceed in accordance its rules and by state law in processing this claim like any other," McIntyre added.
Shielding her name in Hillsborough County Superior Court South, Doe describes herself as a lifelong New Hampshire resident who has no plans to leave the Granite State.
"She intends to contribute a portion of her winnings to a charitable foundation, so that they may do good in the world," the complaint states. "She wishes to be a silent witness to these good works, far from the glare and misfortune that has often fallen upon other lottery 'winners.'"
Going on to recount a half-dozen instances of lotto winners who faced "life-threatening consequences" after their identities were disclosed, Doe notes that one winner in Georgia was killed just two years ago in a home invasion.
With bucolic New Hampshire at the forefront of the nation's opioid crisis, Doe says the size of the prize in her case enhances her risks.
Doe has big plans for the half-billion-dollar ticket but says "time is of the essence."
"Without the ticket being redeemed, interest is being lost to the petitioner on a daily basis," the complaint states. "The ticket needs to be redeemed within one year."
She notes that the state lotto commission has told her she can't white-out her name from the back of the ticket, as any alteration would invalidate it.
If the commission will not grant her an exception on the Wite-Out, she wants her identifying information redacted from any information release the commission must make under the Right to Know law.
Steven Gordon, an attorney for Doe at Shaheen & Gordon, has not responded to a request for comment.
Thanks to Joseph F. for the tip.
I believe "all states" should make "anonymous rights" a law on the benefit of safety for the winner. There have been some horrible things happen to winners.
Wouldn't she have to sign the ticket to claim it anyway? The lottery does change your life. She can afford some security measures if she feels the need.
Yes, she already signed the ticket. Then she wanted to white it out and the lottery commission said if she erased it, it would be invalid. As far as safety, yah you are right, but I like a private life. :)
Being anonymous doesn't keep you safe anyway. Your full responsibility does. When it's time to die it is time to die. A one million dollar lottery winner recently died of cancer would he have lived if he was anonymous. A Florida lady also won more than half billion dollars she is not dead. I don't know what will kill you faster claiming you prize on tv like the smart Massachusetts lady that won over $700 millions or applying white off on your ticket and making it invalid. If you seriously considering your ultimate privacy why did you sign the ticket in the first place. And beside your biggest threat may actually come from within your own family where you cannot be anonymous .Now that you have made one stupid mistake are you going to make another stupid mistake to fix the first stupid mistake with a white off why not use a black off lol
This issue was bound to come up. Somewhere I read that you CAN sign your name but save room for the name of your trust on the same line. Makes sense to me. Guess time for an attorney to determine how to claim those funds is needed.
Correct me if l am wrong, but wasn't this winner acting a lil strange when she was in front of the camera's? Now she wants anonymity?
I have argued with so many seasoned lottery players over the years against signing the tickets. There you go! Vindicated! You should NEVER sign a lottery ticket! Make videos of it, take pictures of yourself holding it, copy it, hide it underground in a glass jar, but never sign the thing!
One day: there is a nut in every fruitcake. Surely your advocating is enticing for anyone then to sign it and claim it. Matter of fact go ahead and leave your 1 k ticket winner on a table at work. Then congrats the person smart enough to sign it and claim it. Anyone can take a picture with a winning ticket. That is not proof,nor could I find it in any lottery rules.
Since its the rule for redemption. I get your stance,it's just not reasonable when wishing to follow the steps.
I've yet to be assaulted by a ticket or had it ambush me....but hey...it could happen! grin
Joebiglotto,great response!
She was very intelligent to get legal help and to learn that she must not white out her signature.
Each State is different and has different rules. To say, "Sign the back of your ticket" to the entire nation is misleading.
She now has the money or soon will have it to fight this in Court. Judges are very powerful in their courtrooms.
She now has eleven months left to fight in our Justice System.
lejardin, The famous lottery lawyer Jason Kurland says on his YouTube videos, "Leave room for the name of your trust above your signature".
Each player must find out if their State will allow this. Before buying a ticket and signing it.
"A small piece of paper carries a lot of weight." This also applies to dollar bills. I forgot who said this.
"More money, more problems," said by a famous Rapper.
I don't believe signing the back
Of your ticket is the issue here really. You are supposed to sign the back of your ticket. But she went beyond signing the ticket she decided to also Print Her Full Name. now she is ok with the signing but she wants to white off Her printed name dumb and bumber
Her legal case may be strengthened by only wanting to white out her printed name.
If you win or buy a lottery ticket sign your ticket and take pictures of it . Now if you want to be anonymous later Do Not Print Your Name. If you use your printed name as your signature and you want to be anonymous at same time you need a psychiatrist lol
This case may be very interesting to follow. Very instructive as well. If you need a psychiatrist then do your homework and find one who will know something about the Lottery. A psychiatrist is able to prescribe medicine.
Always hand a signed ticket to the clerk. Even if it is a winner of a few dollars.
Good Luck Lady PB Jackpot Winner.............. I am thankful for being a part of this site, for my new associates and their helpful information, along with doing research on my own, for the option that best suites me on the day I claim.
I have been waiting for a case like this to happen. I wonder if she tried simply having her trustee attorney simply write over her name...thereby making her name illegible. Or have her trustee attorney scribble it out and write a new name and say the wrong firm attorney signed it by mistake. I think there were other options to be explored with her attorney before she contacted the lottery and said oops. I know of no reason why she could not do this. This is why I do not sign my tickets in states where I can claim via a trust...as I mentioned before...since the law was unclear there. Take a pic of your tickets with the bar code if you are worried about someone stealing it.
No, if claiming via a trust, the trust rep would claim it. Most likely an attorney.
I agree! Only sign in states where you cannot claim via a trust, llc, etc.
The rules are clear.
Good Luck "Jane Doe"? I guess you cannot be happy with just winning all that cash. You want more now?
All games have a "disclaimer" so to speak. If you play, you are accepting those rules.
Just move and change your name. That should take care of any issues you have.
Justxploring, a member with an exceptional sense of humor and who hasn't posted for a long time, once joked about someone winning a jackpot, suing to remain anonymous, and becoming famous for winning the case to remain anonymous.
By signing the back of the ticket she legally agreed to all the lottery's terms and conditions. Why didn't she contact her lawyers for advice BEFORE she signed the ticket or better yet, call the state lottery?
I'd feel more sorry for her if the lawyers hadn't mentioned "Without the ticket being redeemed, interest is being lost to the petitioner on a daily basis," the complaint states. "The ticket needs to be redeemed within one year."
And I wonder if this will sway the judge to rule against the New Hampshire Lottery's rules and regulations.
"She intends to contribute a portion of her winnings to a charitable foundation, so that they may do good in the world," the complaint states. "She wishes to be a silent witness to these good works, far from the glare and misfortune that has often fallen upon other lottery 'winners.'"
Just give me the ticket and I will sign it and accept the consequences.
Yes, I remember a couple weeks ago when a adviser said don't sign the back. Then there were people who accused the adviser of wanting to steal the ticket himself?!? Of course, for this paranoid fantasy, basically all these steps would have to happen.
1) Somebody win the Lottery.
2) The winner would be stupid enough to hire that adviser.
3) The winner would have to be stupid enough to hand over the unsigned ticket, and not a copy of it.
4) The winner would be stupid enough to NOT sue the guy or charge him of theft.
or
5) If the winner does go to trial, the winner would be stupid enough to hire a lawyer stupid enough to not ask these 2 simple questions.
A) Why the adviser was in the town when the ticket was sold
B) Why the adviser doesn't look like the person on the security camera that bought the ticket
Make videos of it, take pictures of yourself holding it, copy it, hide it underground in a glass jar, but never sign the thing!
Yes, and email yourself a copy to yourself on an alternate account and/or a trusted out-of-town relative (read A-B above)
Are you going to let people take photos with YOUR winning ticket, especially if you plan on being anonymous?
Please explain.
The reason to take a picture is in case someone steals the ticket. Then you have grounds to challenge the win, at that point you lose a chance for being anonymous, but at least you will get your money.
hmmm. yep. i do agree wholly with you on the last part on taking a pix, sure would. i would do that. and do that with my jackpots won smaller(in my signature) on this board. I lways take photos when i win. But, some would say, "Sign it even the smaller nice jackpot etc., because this way if lost, no 1 is able to cash it."
SO, IDK....(i don't know.) IJS...(I'm just sayin') but, some should realize that their state do not allow anonymity, but i personally wish
each state would let us only put:
>CITY,COUNTY AND AGE or age-range encompassed with initials, so people have hope/and
realize thattheir area, can win too and do win."
Cassie8620, Californians cannot claim our prizes in a Trust. We may be able to use an LLC but still, have your name made public. We are able to do what Marvin & Mae Acosta did in Chino Hills when they won a third of the record Power Ball jackpot on 1/13/2016 a Wednesday. They claimed six months later. They moved before their names were released. They had movers move their stuff.
"we have been advised that the lottery must proceed in accordance its rules and by state law"
Really? The lottery has to follow their rules and state law? Who would have thunk it?
"I read that you CAN sign your name but save room for the name of your trust on the same line."
I'd figure that a lottery ticket signed with the names of two legal entities is owned jointly by those entities. In that case the NH lottery would be required to release the name of the trust and the person who had also signed the ticket.
"I wonder if she tried simply having her trustee attorney simply write over her name...thereby making her name illegible."
Seriously? Why do you suppose lottery tickets have a place for your signature in the first place? Even if she had no trouble proving that she was the person who bought the ticket the lottery would be obligated to try to figure out who had signed the ticket and whether or not they had a lawful claim to it. Do you suppose the lottery would just take her word for it when she said she was the one who signed it and that nobody else had a lawful claim to it? At best it might require her to wait until the claim period was up in case anyone else came forward to claim ownership. At worst it might have turned the ticket into a souvenir to commemorate the dumbest thing she ever did.
"The rules are clear."
That they are. Maybe she'll get lucky and the court will decide that releasing the name of the trustee complies with the intent of the law, but that's probably judicial activism. The only other option I can imagine is a ruling that the rules/law is somehow invalid or unenforceable, but I can't imagine any basis for that.
This will hopefully force lotteries to post in their rules that if you sign your ticket and then have an option to claim via a trust, your name will still be released or the trust name trumps the name of the individual winner. The rules need to be clarified since they did not address the trust option and signatures in that situation. Judges engage in alleged "judicial activism" every day and that is why you have various case outcomes for similar fact patterns. This is the basic concept of juriprudence. No law or rule is 100% clear and different fact patterns will give rise to different outcomes. That is not judicial activism but how any court system operates. Law 101. Any judge is free to interpret the law based on different facts.
Not that I am going to search the CA lottery rules.... under no circumstances can a lottery winner claim with a trust ?
To be honest. If I won. I would just be happy to have won (It's not easy to win anything at all actually). I'm ready to defend myself from the wolves. She sounds ungrateful. Sounds like she's hiding something from someone. She has the option to forfeit the prize and let all the money go back to the lottery. It's obvious to me she doesn't have credit card debt. You can publish my name anywhere as long as I get rid of my credit card debt.
She hasn't claimed yet, I believe you are thinking of the lady in Massachusets who claimed the moring after with her mom and sister in attendance.....
So is the winner going to not claim the winnings because they don't like the lottery rules?
There must be more to this than meets the eye. The MA winner couldn't wait to claim her money.
l think you correct Buylow.l knew that there was a winner in that neck of the woods. Thanks for raising the fog.
Initially l thought you were wrong Music, but after re reading their handbook rules, it appears that our lottery is making it crystal clear that there is no way in H, that you, a winner is going to bypass the public exposure. I noticed that these leprechauns had actually highlighted those words, to make absolute certain that winners get it. The thinking is probably "We not taxing your winnings, so just shut the heck up" and go along with the rules.We never going to get to a point where anonymity for lottery winners in CA will come to pass.Bummer.
And to add a note to your info, property ownership and I think car titles are matters of public info. To protect yourself, create a LLC that is "anonymous", and do the big purchases with that. Unfortunately, they still might have to change their name.
CDanaT, Here in CA you can claim with a Trust but your name will be made public. Plus where you purchased the ticket, the total gross and net amounts won.
Go to www.calottey.com and click the Win tab. That will take you to the page with the Winner's Handbook listed on the left and upper side. Click on Winner's Handbook, select your language, and you will be in the winner's handbook.
I plan on using an LLC and a Living Revocable Trust. So I will not claim soon after winning.
Good Luck!
I love your signature and think that President Lincoln would laugh at it as well.
I am coming to believe that LLCs are State specific. Something like signing your ticket. Trusts are also State specific, I think.
Sarge0202, Do you know anything about Off Shore accounts? They may cost a bit but could provide asset protection.
noise-gate, I plan on respectfully requesting minimum publicity. Meaning I will say No to the Media Availability and No to the photo celebrity. Just like Marvin and Mae Acosta did in Chino Hills, CA.
I may give them a written statement which includes my attorneys' names. Information about Lottery Post and my "music*" name.
Gotta run!
Oooo, look at you.
l prefer not to show up at all for photo shoots etc.l would instruct my attorney-attorneys to face the press,and take all questions while l remain at home, crunching the numbers. Alas this State will not allow that.Last resort the Gorilla suit. Why expose my raven hair & porcelian skin to the press?
As Edna Mode once said " I won't allow it."
First time , I ever heard that it was a lady who won the $$$$$ in NH
Is it better just to turn the ticket to an lawyer ? What is your opinion on here ?
If you won what steps would you do ? Where you stay anonymous ??? Let the lawyer turn the ticket in ? There needs a set plan for this .
That couple had it all thought out !!!
And then there is the complete OPPOSITE of this story - all the people who go on the show
My Lottery Dream House.
These people go a show which shows them looking multiple houses to buy, then shows WHICH ONE they buy. On the show they use a map to show where the possible new house is located in relation to there current home. Then they go back a couple of months later to show them enjoying the new house. Most of the winners are scratch offs for about 1 million.
So in this case they are inviting anyone to stop on by with hands held out
This is soooo unnecessary. SHE WON! Cash in that check! Lol! What an ungrateful winner. As if winning the Powerball was an easy thing to do.
It's no wonder this happened, every time the jackpot gets high, all the "experts" and lottery officials on TV are saying "Sign your ticket! Put it in a safe place!" I mean, I'm not going to feel bad for someone who won that much money, but I understand her intentions.
A problem I wouldn't mind having.
"The rules need to be clarified since they did not address the trust option"
Players' grasp of the rules aren't always clear, but the rules themselves are generally very clear and specific.
"Any judge is free to interpret the law based on different facts."
The facts of a case determine which laws are relevant, but judges are required to apply the law according to it's meaning. In some instances the law may be ambiguous, but any necessary interpretation is based on the law, not the facts of the case.
It's entirely possible that lettering her designate a trust as the winner after signing the ticket with her name fits the intent of those who wrote the applicable rule or law, but the plain meaning of the rule/law as written trumps possible intent. If those who wrote it intended to allow anything other than what the law plainly says they should have written something else. Judicial activism refers to ruling based on personal opinion about what is right or proper, not a legitimate interpretation required by ambiguity. Unless there's sufficient ambiguity in the law a ruling allowing the trust to be named as the winner would be a clear case of judicial activism.
In this instance it's very unlikely that there's any question about the clear meaning of the law. The lottery is required to release the name of the winner. The winner can be a trust or other legal entity, but because she signed her name to the ticket she's the winner and therefore it's her name that the lottery will be required to release. Any trust or other legal entity she creates is now just a tool to manage her assets.
These NH winners didn't go through a bunch of hoopla to get their winnings
https://www.lotterypost.com/news/306800
Have seen many episodes where folks won multi-million dollar jackpots. Take you all through there very exquisite homes. All I can think of some nutcase will be watching and can figure out where you live. Just like years ago Sister and I were in French Lick, Indiana. We knew Larry Bird lived there. Asked for directions. Guy said go down that road there, you'll know it when you see it. He was correct.
No law is 100% clear and fact patterns result in different outcomes. The law says murder is a crime but there are so many exceptions and mitigating crcumstances based on case law, it would be impossible to list them. Most attorneys who have actually practiced, will tell you that any law with varying scenarios may result in different outcomes. The clear meaning of the law is one thing, the unusual fact pattern is another.
On the back of most state lottery tickets it says something like "by signing the ticket the winner is agreeing to all lottery rules and laws" or "by purchasing a lottery ticket, players are bound by all laws and game rules".
"In this instance it's very unlikely that there's any question about the clear meaning of the law."
Agreed the meaning is clear, but she won one of the largest lottery prizes and like most of us probably heard many news agencies and lottery commercials saying to "Immediately sign the back of a winning ticket". While it's an argument it's probably unlikely the judge will rule in her favor based on what she may or may not heard known.
This is silly. Reason: by taking this to court ...it becomes:
Drum roll please?
Public record. She is basically going to be known whether she likes it or not. I don't think her win exempts her from the rules and regulations.
I personally wouldn't treat her any less then mankind nor would I give her priveledge.
Let her change her name or create a trust after claim. She hasn't even gotten her money yet..
Sounds like this winner might actually be wanting more than 15 minutes of fame. Collect your money and bounce. Let your name leak out, keep quiet and it will all die down. Anyone really know what Mavis is up to these days?
So, you can, "Live Free or Die", but not in anonymity!
Is it possible the winner could be an illegal immigrant and that's the reason for not identifying her self?
Is this really relevant?
I always thought lottery tickets were bearer's property? Though not the same remember the Iraqi that bought a winning Oregon ticket through one of those lottery purchasing sites and won? He wasn't an American, but not an immigrant either.
SMH
illegal immigrants don't move to NH.Unless they are from Europe. Folks south of the border don't like living in waist high snow
It's interesting in the sense of what this person feels she needs to do in order to feel safe after winning. The jackpot style of gambling has taken hold. Rather than a few or more modest winners, we now have one winner with an obscene amount of money that really if we're completely honest no one needs and is not reflective of normal wealth distribution. So what does she feel she needs to do? Hide her identity. The goverment and their contractors who are private by the way, only care about the integrity of their game. Making sure that their game is considered legal and not fixed in any way, and as they should as since the time that they began, and especially since 1974 they have been running and kicking out all the illegal lotteries to the curb. However, in all that they do, i.e. the government, they did not stop all those illegal numbers operators from getting jobs in the "state-run lotteries", and hence the bribes and the kickbacks go on. She shouldn't worry though, she has enough to bribe or kickback a few in my opinion. And there's plenty of ex-Navy Seals who'll be her bodyguard as well. Get the point?
When "Powerball" began, it was called Lotto America and had a jackpot limit of $80 million dollars. The reason that Lotto America was created was because the state run lotteries went into a panic at the idea of a National Lottery being created as proposed by Rep. Cardiss Collins, may she rest in peace. The $80 million cap was due to concerns of excessively large jackpots. Those days are long gone. And now well this woman is the picture. It is a concern. But the idea that $560 million dollars is what's needed to live your life comfortably is ridiculous. And well from the start, this woman does not seem too comfortable...
Here are the numbers for the cash lump sum for New Hampshire as well as CA and other States. $560,000,000.00 x .63 = $352,000,000.00 This is her take home after all Federal taxes are paid by April 15, 2019 New Hampshire does not tax lottery winnings. USAMEGA.
Of course, she will earn investment income this year so that will be taxed. Time for a CPA.
My math mistakes. I should not have used the $560 million amount. I will now use the correct numbers.
The Cash Value = $352,000,000.00 X .63 = $221,760,000.00
I use .63 because the new tax rate is 37% or .37. Subtract .37 from 1.00 = .63
This drawing adjusted the jackpot and cash value numbers downward from the original projections.
Sorry about my mistake.
If am an illegal immigrant and win. This will be my only opportunity to give ice the middle finger on TV
And that's no hyperbole Coin Toss!
Justxploring truly had an exceptional sense of humor, and was a wonderful writer to boot. Hope she's doing well.
if so, the money should be confiscated to help pay for that darn wall.
My personal take on this is that the best position is to be the richest person that no one ever heard of.
The greatest thing the devil ever did was make people believe he doesn't exist.
Doesn't mean you can't do good work with the winnings, or have nice things.
I personally wouldn't want every Tom, Dick and Harry (the a$$hole uncle) knocking on my door with their hand held out and open. My arm could get tired from all the door slamming that would occur.
She signed the back of the ticket and identified herself.
jejeje now you know why revolving doors were invented
This woman should book a cruise. Or fly South toward Florida. She might fall in love with the Climate down there.
God this woman is just sad and pathetic with her whining about this. If billionaires all over the world names and faces get published in Forbes and Fortune every year and they are just fine, she will be too. She has hundreds of millions of dollars, buy a mansion in a gated neighborhood, and hire security too if she feels the need to and STFU. I have guys in here in my subdivision that make up to $25 million a year and you can walk right up to our front doors and nothing has happened to anyone here ever so she will be just fine. She watches too many movies or reads too many books. No one can take anything from you either if you master one simple word in life, "NO". LOL
First of all even if that were so and it's not, that doesn't stop you from collecting the money, anyone from anywhere can win the lottery. Secondly you can generally buy citizenship/residency in most countries for about $500,000 give or take, sometimes it is in the form of investing in the country like buying or opening a business, sometimes it is in the form of purchasing a property for that amount or higher. Regardless if you have that much money I doubt you give a flying F if you have to stay or leave America anyway. LOL
Just now they said on CBS that they will run a story on this on the Evening News.
Keep bringing unwanted attention to yourself, not too smart IMO.
They talk about this on The Talk and on the CBS Evening news. more attention. what an ungrateful winner
This is what it says on the back of all lottery tickets sold in Md. I'm pretty sure PB and MM tickets would say close to the same thing.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION: PLEASE SIGN THE BACK OF YOUR TICKET. This ticket is a bearer instrument. Anyone possessing a winning ticket may claim the prize. Valid only for date(s) shown. Prizes must be claimed within 182 days of the drawing. All winners, tickets, and transactions are subject to Maryland Lottery regulations and State law. The Maryland Lottery is not liable for tickets or prizes previously claimed.
TO CLAIM A PRIZE: Present this ticket to any Maryland Lottery retailer. Validated winning tickets valued up to $600 are eligible for INSTANT PAYOFF. Validated winning tickets valued higher than $600 will be claimed after claim is filed. Void if mutilated, altered, or irregular in any manner. Visit the Lottery website at mdlottery.com for locations to claim prizes over $600.
Underneath this are two lines. One for your printed name, and one for your signature.
I do not view her as ungrateful on any level. If a trust was an option in her state, the lottery officials are aware a winner would not be signing the ticket as a claimant. So the lottery site telling people to sign their ticket is wrong and there should be a disclaimer saying while it may be advisable to sign the ticket, your signature would prevent anonymity if one chooses to claim via a trust. I think a lot of people are missing the legal significance of her lawsuit. Perhaps she has small children and wants to keep them safe and anonymous. We all should want the laws and conditions of claiming anonymously to not be constricted or "fuzzy" vs broadened or at least have a more liberal interpretation. She is actually doing lottery players a great service.
Now if she had a lawsuit in a state where claiming via a trust was not an option, as in Virginia, then I would think her lawsuit was a waste of time.
Close, but still slightly incorrect. The person won't pay 37% taxes on all of the money. The first $12,000 is tax free, The first taxable chunk will be taxed at the lowest tax rate ($9,525 at 10%, so $952.50 tax), the next chunk at 12% up to $38,700 ($3501.00 tax), 22% from $38,700 to $82,500 ($9636.00 tax)etc etc & then the full 37% on everything over $500,000.
So figuring out the taxes paid on everything over $500k is easy, figuring out the rest of the taxes below $500k will require a calculator ;)
If she was worried about privacy, then she should have never played knowing the privacy laws for NH.
I have searched the CA lottery web site and it does say a winner can claim their winnings through a Trust, but the Trust has to be established before the winning ticket is cashed in. Also, the winner's name(s) (in the Trust) will be released to the public. I've downloaded their "Winner's Handbook" and have read through the pages more than once. An effective route to take would be to change your name first then cash in the winning ticket.
So the media posted the date in February for her court appearance.
If she thinks she'll be anonymous after that fiasco with media coverage I still have a bridge for sale.
She's garnering more attention to herself than she would have had she just cashed it in. Case in point, do you ever hear anything about that largest lottery winner in Massachusetts?
Ha Ha Ha, good point. Regardless at some point someone she knows is going to want money from her and the minute she doesn't give it to them they will out her as the winner, not to mention unless you were massively wealthy from before, pretty sure someone will figure it out. My grandfather had a saying I remembered from when I was young, "you can hide and buy land, but you can't hide and work it".
Her antics have all but assured the media will hunt her down now, so good job lady, meanwhile I can't even remember the name or the face of the kid from Florida that won all that money the other day.
She has the same attorney as the big NH Powerball winner from July of 2016. He's the husband of one of our US senators Jean Shaheen. Too bad she didn't contact them first before doing anything. I know if I'm ever lucky enough to win any sort of jackpot that will be my attorney of choice.
You have a point Bluedog, but...you forgetting the " side door." She could slip into court through that entrance, every court has one. It's done all the time with celebrities avoiding the papparazi. Then again, she may have an ugly mug, so the wait would be extremely dissapointing. The press hates following ugly people.
Robin Egg trust; had to look it up to read the story on PB website!
"The law says murder is a crime but there are so many exceptions and mitigating crcumstances based on case law"
The laws on murder, like most laws, are extremely clear. Assuming what you write has a close relationship with what you mean "mitigating circumstances" are facts about what happened and therefore determine what well-defined laws apply, not what the law is. An example that many people will be readily familiar with is George Zimmerman getting off for killing Trayvon Martin because if it's self defense it's not murder based on the very clear laws that specifically define self defense and how much force can legally be used to defend yourself.
The same thing applies to other laws.
"by taking this to court ...it becomes ... Public record. "
Have you read any of the articles about the case and noticed the woman's "name"? When the case is over there will be a public record about Jane Doe winning a crap load of money in the lottery. That may result in a few exceptionally stupid people making life unpleasant for some poor schmuck who's actually named Jane Doe, but it won't be any trouble at all for the winner.
"If billionaires all over the world ..."
There's a big differences between most rich people and lottery winners. Rich people usually don't become suddenly rich, so they've got plenty of time to learn how to deal with it. And even though there are lowlifes that would be happy to target Bill Gates or Warren Buffet there are far more people who have a sense of entitlement to the money that lottery winners don't deserve because they got it for nothing.
"So the lottery site telling people to sign their ticket is wrong and there should be a disclaimer ..."
Most lotteries offer a warning that the ticket is a bearer instrument and signing the ticket will prevent somebody else from claiming it. The tickets also have a disclaimer warning players that the ticket is subject to the rules. Understanding those rules and making appropriate decisions is the responsibility of the player, and the lottery has no obligation to walk them through everything.
"Why can't an auditor verify a winner?"
It's who signs the ticket that matters, not who verifies the winner.
My buddy won the MegaMillions a few years ago, everyone knows it, he was even on one of those lottery shows on TV, he's fine, you can walk right up to his door, in fact two of my friends have won millions and both of them live their lives just fine, no gates, no security, nothing. The paranoia is laughably overrated. The people you have to watch for are the so called financial experts that want you to invest money with them in their scams.
If your buddy and everyone you know won mega millions am afraid of your odds of winning will be like being adopted and brought back to earth by UFO :)
So now her attorney is saying that the court is costing her INTEREST on the money (14k a day) by not acting fast enough. Claims irreparable financial harm
. Gee no one said/thought after they found out they would need to fight this in court - gee we will be losing all the interest while fighting this??? --
Steven Gordon is trying to fast-track a court hearing in the case, telling the New Hampshire Union Leader that “time is of the essence in this matter.”
The winning ticket, purchased in January at Reed’s Ferry Market in Merrimack, N.H., translates to a lump-sum cash prize of $352 million before taxes and $268 million after taxes.
The woman, who has not yet submitted her winning ticket to the New Hampshire Lottery Commission, is referred to as Jane Doe in the court documents.
“Pushing the resolution of this case into March will subject Ms. Doe to serious and irreparable financial harm,” Gordon told the Union Leader.
I'd say her lawyer is doing two things. He's attempting to try the case in press releases before he tries it in a court room, and he's doing his <snip>edest to try it with emotion and irrelevant BS instead of the law. Of course when the law isn't on your side you need to try a different tactic.
This jackpot winner wants special treatment and just a guess but she is probably someone that is or was anti gambling.
I think it's a pretty safe bet that the winner is just hoping she can be treated the way she would have if she'd gotten legal advice before making a huge mistake instead of after.
The only evidence on her views about gambling that I'm aware of is that she apparently bought at least one lottery ticket. Anyone is free to speculate about her beliefs regarding the ethics of gambling, but since I'm not a moron I try to avoid leaping to unfounded conclusions.
I'm just having a terribly hard time believing that this is even an issue. She'll eventually claim the ticket. They're not going to change the rules for her and she's not going to walk away from half a billion FREE dollars.
I'm in agreement. The lottery should not cave in to this woman's demands for an error that she is fully responsible for. As the saying goes, "Too Bad, So Sad".