Reasking question about burial plots

[waydi]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Michigan.

In 1999 my husbands father passed away and was cremated. His widow, my husbands stepmother was left everything in his will. In 2007, my husband and I went to seek out obtaining some burial plots in the town we grew up in. We were informed that there were still plots in his Grandfather's name that had never been transferred. We were told because they had never been transferred that we could do so. We knew that the last living sibling had passed after his father and family was living in Arizona with no intentions of moving back to Michigan. We proceeded to pay the transfer fee and had them put in our name and his daughter's. This year, 2009, my husband and his brother decided they would like to put a military stone on the family plot in honor of their father. In order to do this they had to contact the step-mother who has since remarried. Once she found out these were in our name, she proceeded to the township clerk and showed the will stating that these were HER property. Since her spouse was not the last living descendant, these were never in her husband's name can she take these away from us???

We have a notarized deed from the township as well as the receipt for the transfer fee,and at present verbal okay from the cousins.

As I had stated in an earlier unfinished question, these were not transferred into our name for the purpose of making any money. These were transferred to keep in the family and for the use of family members. Of note, my husband's father's ashes were scattered and not put in an urn at this cemetary.

We have at present, while the township is investigating been asked if we are willing to buy these from the ex-step-mother.

We have been told that she has no claim to them as they were never named as specific property in the will and after all ten years has passed and she had not been interested until she found out that they were in our name.

Thank you to anyone who can give us a clue.

[Kiawah]

So if the grandfather owned these plots, when the grandfather died and his estate went through probate, who inherited those plots? What did the grandfathers will say?

Your husbands father, the family member in Arizona, or someone else?

You may have grabbed some assets, that weren't yours legitimately to grab.

[waydi]

To our knowledge there was no will. The grandfather passed in 1959 and these plots had never changed names to anyones knowledge. They were never put as specific property in anyones will that we are aware of.

[Kiawah]

If the grandfather didn't have a will, then his assets would pass via Michagan intestate laws. I don't know whether this URL below was in effect at the time, you're going to need to get a Michagan lawyer involved to resolve who the legal owner(s) is(are). You should check the probate court in the county where the grandfather died, and investigate if probate was ever done.

[url]http://www.fm.fcs.msue.msu.edu/Michigan%20Intestate%20Succession1.pdf[/url]

May be easier to pay off all of the relatives(in whatever portion/proportion they would most likely own), or just go buy your own plots.