Anyone ever have to battle a close family member over an inheritance?

[SaladFork]

Fun fact of the day - You add a space after a period. Like this. See a space. Goes here, even after a comma. Space, start typing again, space.

 

[needtogetarmy]

I am an attorney. There is NO SUCH THING as an ORAL WILL. In every jurisdiction in the US a will MUST BE in writing. Period. No exceptions.

Also, if there was no written will, every state has a statute protecting the living spouse and children. Depending on how many children there are, the spouse will generally get 50% to 1/3 of the estate and the remainder will go to the children. Every state is different though.

I would start by looking at the original probate proceedings and see what the hell happened. I would also consult an attorney ASAP if you have a significant monetary stake in the matter. If you wait you will get screwed.

 

[ortiz34]

OMFG

PWNED to the tenth degree

 

[hog#head#cheese]

I am an attorney. There is NO SUCH THING as an ORAL WILL. In every jurisdiction in the US a will MUST BE in writing. Period. No exceptions.

Also, if there was no written will, every state has a statute protecting the living spouse and children. Depending on how many children there are, the spouse will generally get 50% to 1/3 of the estate and the remainder will go to the children. Every state is different though.

I would start by looking at the original probate proceedings and see what the hell happened. I would also consult an attorney ASAP if you have a significant monetary stake in the matter. If you wait you will get screwed.

So what your saying is legally she is entitled to 1/3 or what she is asking for?

 

[pin]

You could always pull a "Christian Bale" and beat her until she wets her pants.

 

[hog#head#cheese]

You could always pull a "Christian Bale" and beat her until she wets her pants.

Hey PIN when I die Im leaving you Rachelefc Is that Ok?

 

[gotmilk]

meh...here's one for you.

My great grandfather was a postmaster here in Maine. He kept every stamp known alive in complete sheets. Millions of dollars worth.

My Gram is dying of cancer now and all of a sudden, her shithead kids are trying to talk her into selling her stamp and coin collection so they can split it.

As the only boy grandson, it was going to *cough* be passed on. Now, it's probably going to be pawned by assclowns who have no clue what that's really worth.

 

[musclemom]

So what your saying is legally she is entitled to 1/3 or what she is asking for?

No, what he's saying is she's legally entitled to whatever the law in Louisiana says she's entitled to. Here is what I found about Louisiana inheritance laws and dying intestate (without a will). I have no idea how this would apply to your situation but I do believe the red bolded sections are particularly pertinent to your case (incidentally, these are the most fucked up, outdated inheritance laws I've ever read).

Louisiana Intestate Succession Laws

If any part of a Louisiana decedent's estate is not effectively disposed of by will, the intestate share will be distributed in the following order and manner:

1. Surviving spouse. A surviving spouse (not judicially separated from the decedent) is generally considered first when distributing assets, including the decedent's share of community (marital) and separate (nonmarital) property, from the intestate estate. However, the amount a surviving spouse is entitled to varies as follows:

* If the decedent leaves no descendants, the surviving spouse is entitled to all of the decedent's share of community property.
* If the decedent is survived by descendants, the surviving spouse gets the legal right to use (known as a "usufruct") decedent's share of community property for the rest of the surviving spouse's life or until remarriage (whichever occurs first).
* As for separate property, the surviving spouse has to wait in line after decedent's descendants, parents, and siblings or their descendants.

Caution!

If you are a resident of Louisiana, you should strongly consider making out a will or otherwise ensuring that your assets transfer automatically to your nearest and dearest. The primary reason for this is that Louisiana's default rules may result in an heir getting less than the full ownership of your assets.

As mentioned above, the surviving spouse gets limited ownership rights (only the use) of decedent's share of community property if there are also descendants waiting to inherit. The same applies in other areas. For example, surviving parents that inherit separate property can use it only for their lives if there are also siblings of the decedent.

Selling property with such limited ownership rights can get complicated. More importantly, the sales value is lowered and limits marketability. This can be a devastating hindrance if selling the property is needed to meet financial hardship. So, avoid these problems by straightening out in advance who gets what.

2. Heirs other than surviving spouse. Any part of the intestate estate not passing to the surviving spouse as indicated above, or the entire intestate estate if there is no surviving spouse, passes as follows to decedent's:

1. Descendants.
2. Parents.
3. Siblings.
4. Siblings' descendants.
5. Ascendants, starting with decedent's grandparents, in the nearest degree of kinship to the decedent.
6. Collateral relatives, in the nearest degree of kinship to the decedent.

3. State of Louisiana. If there is no taker under any of the above provisions, the intestate estate passes by default to the state of Louisiana.

Louisiana Intestate Succession Law Fun Facts

* Relatives of the decedent who are conceived before decedent's death, but born afterwards, inherit as if they were born during decedent's lifetime.
* Evil-doers beware! A person convicted of the crime of intentionally killing or attempting to kill a decedent can be declared unworthy to inherit from the decedent's estate. The same applies if it is judicially determined (i.e., by a civil court) that the person participated in the unjustified killing of the decedent. However, the person can defend his or her worthiness to inherit by providing proof that they were forgiven or otherwise reconciled with the decedent. (Obviously, this defense works better if the decedent manages to survive a murder attempt.)
* Louisiana's intestate succession laws can be found beginning at Article 880 of the Louisiana Civil Code.

 

[hog#head#cheese]

This just got worse

 

[Smurfy]

Fun fact of the day - You add a space after a period. Like this. See a space. Goes here, even after a comma. Space, start typing again, space.

10 on the dick scale LOL


what about parentheses? space after parentheses?