QUESTION
My uncle passed away. His wife is living, but has Alzheimer''s. They have no children. They are worth a lot of money. Does her side get everything?
Asked on Jul 23rd, 2012 on Wills and Probate - New Jersey
More details to this question:
The wife''s brother stepped up to put her in a facility and become administrator. This is all being done with my uncle''s money. He would have wanted his wife to have the best care. We can''t find a will. If there is none, what will happen to the estate? My aunt was generous to both sides of the family, but now cannot express her opinions. Who makes these decisions for her legally? Is it legal that my uncle''s side gets no say? The brother is going through legal proceedings to become the executor, and then sell all the investment properties. Do we get no say in the investments?
1 ANSWER
2 Awards
Unfortunately - your uncle's estate passed to his wife upon his death. She is now free to do with it what she wants. If she has not left a will, then the estate will go to the wife's family by way of intestate succession. This will only include her relatives, not her relations by marriage. If they owned investment properties, chances are they used a lawyer for the closing. It might be worth some investigative work to determine if they ever made a will. Even a photocopy or a draft at this point would give you some legal basis to challenge the disposition of her estate. Good luck. If you want to give me some more facts, I can possibly give you more ideas about where to look for a will.
Answered on Jul 24th, 2012 at 6:33 PM
Diana L. Anderson, Certified Elder Law Attorney This response is not legal advice and does not establish any form of attorney/client relationship