Divorced dad without a will

My father passed away without a will. He did recently write a note to my mother leaving all of his assets to her. This was not notarized. He was married to my mother for 20 years and got legally divorced from my mother a few years ago but they still lived in the same house in New Jersey. They also each have 50% ownership of the house. My father also had no other assets and no life insurance. He had unsecured debts totalling 20 thousand dollars.

Who is responsible for the debts? Does his 50% ownership of the house now go to my mother? Is the note he wrote, leaving his assets to my mother legal? Can the unsecured debtors go after the house since his name is on it?

Please help. Thanks,
Charlie

The note probably will be accepted as long as he signed it--it did not need to be notarized.

The question of ownership of the house can not be resolved until the question is answered: is the house paid for or not?

The spouse will probably not be responsible for the debts. The unsecured debtors may be able to go after the house if it is paid for, but they would not if there is still a mortgage due on it.

Your mother really does need to have a consultation (first time is usually free) with a local probate attorney to find out the acceptability of the handwritten note and also about how her status as a divorcee may affect this estate. Since she was named as the beneficiary, she will probably qualify to receive whatever is left in the estate, but in some states, divorced spouses are not allowed to inherit, so she needs to find out what her situation will be.

DANDY DON