The Probate Lawyer Blog:  “Tom Carvel was the creator of soft serve ice cream and one of the founding fathers of the franchise system in America.   When his ice cream truck suffered a flat tire in New York in 1934, he sold his melting ice cream from a parking lot. Those humble beginnings led to the first soft-serve ice cream store and eventually grew into the Carvel ice cream chain with 850 locations.  Carvel died in 1990 at age 84, with a fortune conservatively estimated at around $80 million.   The legal fighting started soon thereafter.  And it hasn't stopped yet.  The battles have passed through federal courts in three states, along with state courts in New York, Florida, Delaware, and even England (not New England … England!).  Reportedly, legal fees and commissions have already cost the Carvel financial legacy more than $28 million”