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Lost Heir is not really lost

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Texas Rose

Junior Member
What is the name of your state? Texas

My father passed away in the year 2000. I was estranged from him. The rumor is that he had no will but I am not certain of this. He was divorced from my mother and had remarried. This spouse survives him and they have no children together. I have two other brothers as well.
When my father died, a family member called all of the sons and told us that they needed our names, addresses and phone numbers. They gave this information to the current spouse who supposedly gave this information to our deceased father's lawyer. Nothing happened in regard to any inheritance and since we are all basically estranged from each other, we didn't follow up on it. We think now that the surviving spouse probably threw this information away and claimed that we are "lost" and can'be found.
A close friend of my deceased father recently spoke with me and told me I needed to contact my deceased father's lawyer and claim my inheritance. I sent a certified letter to the lawyer in question, but got no response. The estate is quite a large one and it is possible that the surviving spouse is trying to keep everything.

I found out that there is a probate case open in this matter (since 2000) but no disposition date yet. What does this mean? Is it possible that I have an inheritance that I don't know about? SHouldn't I have been notified if this were the case? If there was no will isn't it correct that the surviving spouse gets half of the estate and the children all get the other half? Is there a statue of limiations on this? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Confused in Texas
 


Dandy Don

Senior Member
Visit the county courthouse probate court to see what the will says and to get a copy of it (or order it by mail) to see whether you are listed as a beneficiary or not. While at the courthouse ask to look at all documents in the probate file--it is most odd that probate is still open now or unfinished. Then consult with a Texas probate lawyer to find out your rights. There should be some indication in the file of the financial value of the estate.

It is possible that the surviving spouse could have asked her husband to put all assets into a trust and thus no need for probate, or she could have gotten him to sign power of attorney or name her the sole beneficiary of all assets, thus leaving nothing to be probated. But your attorney can help you figure everything out. This is certainly worth looking into!

DANDY DON IN OKLAHOMA ([email protected])
 
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