Notary wrote Will with no witnesses!

[Brokenbeam52]

This Notary in South Carolina wrote a Last Will and Testament for a 90 year old lady and neglected to put any witnesses on the Will! She has done other wills and put witnesses on them! This Notary"s negligence cost me 8 acres of land and a house! I am a Daughter-In-Law so South Carolina does not recognize me as an heir! My Mother-In-Law had promised me my deceased husband's 7 acres of land for 20 years! She told me she would put it in her Will! The Notary wrote a "Bad" will! I have checked with some attorneys, and they said there is nothing I can do! I feel so cheated and mistreated! She tried to give me what she wanted me to have, but the Notary ruined it for me! Should I just give up? What would you do? Life cannot be this unfair! Her son and I were married 15 years!

 

[adjusterjack]

There's nothing you can do about losing the land. Sorry, that ship has sailed.

But there might be something you can do about the notary. Perhaps report her to the Secretary of State if that is where notaries get licensed and/or to whatever authorities would be concerned with practicing law without a license.

 

[Dandy Don]

Too bad you didn't think to ask her to let you see the will while she was still living.

Did the will she wrote name you as a beneficiary?

Do you have children that were fathered by your husband?

Have you talked to the notary to find out why she did not ask for witnesses?

Please explain what you mean when you say the action cost you 8 acres of land and a house--who gets that?

Has the will been submitted to probate court and then rejected?

How many brothers and sisters does your husband have? Surely the attorneys have told you that they are the ones who are next in line to inherit.

 

[justalayman]

This may seem like an odd question but is this notary Hispanic/Mexican? Are you or your former mother in law a Mexican immigrant?

A notary in the US cannot write wills legally. Their purpose is to be a state approved witness of a signers identity. A notary public in Mexico provides is quasi attorney entity (from what I understand of them). Apparently many who have come from Mexico and emigrated to the US don’t understand that and have ended up using a notary for more than they are legally alllowed to do in the US.

 

[Taxing Matters]

This Notary in South Carolina wrote a Last Will and Testament for a 90 year old lady and neglected to put any witnesses on the Will! She has done other wills and put witnesses on them! This Notary"s negligence cost me 8 acres of land and a house! I am a Daughter-In-Law so South Carolina does not recognize me as an heir! My Mother-In-Law had promised me my deceased husband's 7 acres of land for 20 years! She told me she would put it in her Will! The Notary wrote a "Bad" will! I have checked with some attorneys, and they said there is nothing I can do! I feel so cheated and mistreated! She tried to give me what she wanted me to have, but the Notary ruined it for me! Should I just give up? What would you do? Life cannot be this unfair! Her son and I were married 15 years!

Her estate might be able to sue the notary for it (though that may be a long shot). Maybe if the estate won such a case it would be willing then to give the money won to you as the inheritance you were supposed to have. One of the problems there, though, is proving that the notary is the one who screwed this up. The notary might have told your mother-in-law she needed to get the witnesses for the will.

You can also report her to the local prosecutor (known as a solicitor in South Carolina) and/or the state attorney general for possible prosecution for unauthorized practice of law. Finally, you may report her to the South Carolina bar, which regulates the activities of lawyers and also monitors possible violations of the rules on unauthorized practice of law. See the very bottom of the SC bar page on the unauthorized practice of law. Even if she had got the will done right she still broke the law in drafting the will.

Unfortunately, though, I think you likely have no direct claim against the notary because you didn't hire the notary and the notary had no legal obligations to you. That's probably why the attorneys are telling you there is nothing you can do to recover from the notary.

It was illegal for the notary to write the will if the notary is not also an attorney. In the U.S. "notary public" is basically authorized to do just one thing: attest that the person signing a document is really who that person claims to be. Notaries public in the U.S. are not lawyers and have no particular legal training or experience just by being a notary public. This is in marked contrast to the services of a notario publico in Mexico. The notario publico in Mexico is lawyer and has a much bigger role in legal matters than does the U.S. notary public. As justalayman points out, that unfortunately can cause confusion for new immigrants coming from Mexico or other civil law countries (e.g. those countries in Latin America that inherited their legal systems from Spain). This notary may have been taking advantage of that confusion. In any event, the only persons who may draft a will for another person in the U.S. is a lawyer.

 

[Brokenbeam52]

There's nothing you can do about losing the land. Sorry, that ship has sailed.

But there might be something you can do about the notary. Perhaps report her to the Secretary of State if that is where notaries get licensed and/or to whatever authorities would be concerned with practicing law without a license.

Thank you! I already reported her to the Probate Judge. The judge did not do anything.

 

[Brokenbeam52]

Too bad you didn't think to ask her to let you see the will while she was still living.

Did the will she wrote name you as a beneficiary?

Do you have children that were fathered by your husband?

Have you talked to the notary to find out why she did not ask for witnesses?

Please explain what you mean when you say the action cost you 8 acres of land and a house--who gets that?

Has the will been submitted to probate court and then rejected?

How many brothers and sisters does your husband have? Surely the attorneys have told you that they are the ones who are next in line to inherit.

She wrote me in the Will before her 3 grandchildren! They did not do anything for her or visit her when she was sick and helpless! I did for her. She willed me her house and its contents and 8 acres of land. The executrix claims she would ask the grandchildren to give me my land that she knew my Mother-In-Law wanted me to have, but I have not heard anything yet! Thank you for responding! The South Carolina Codes Of Law states that a Daughter-In-Law is not an heir. That law was written in 1986. It is antiquated and needs to be changed! It is not fair!

 

[Brokenbeam52]

Too bad you didn't think to ask her to let you see the will while she was still living.

Did the will she wrote name you as a beneficiary?

Do you have children that were fathered by your husband?

Have you talked to the notary to find out why she did not ask for witnesses?

Please explain what you mean when you say the action cost you 8 acres of land and a house--who gets that?

Has the will been submitted to probate court and then rejected?

How many brothers and sisters does your husband have? Surely the attorneys have told you that they are the ones who are next in line to inherit.

I did ask to see the Will, but she told me to not worry because her niece, the executrix would make sure I got my 7 acres of land my deceased husband wanted me to have. His father left him the land, and he told his mother that if he died before me; he wanted me to have it! His mother did not put the land in his hands because he used drugs. She wanted to give me the land in 1998 after he got killed in a car accident, but we owed the IRS and were making arrangements to pay. We did not want them to take the land. After I paid the IRS, I told Moma I could get my land now; and she said, it is in the Will now! I asked to see the Will, and she said don't worry, it is in the Will! The executrix knew what was in that Will and tried to get another Will written. Her new Will was invalid too! Did not have two witnesses! It was done by a different Notary! I guess I was not meant to get my husband's land he wanted me to have!

 

[Brokenbeam52]

Her estate might be able to sue the notary for it (though that may be a long shot). Maybe if the estate won such a case it would be willing then to give the money won to you as the inheritance you were supposed to have. One of the problems there, though, is proving that the notary is the one who screwed this up. The notary might have told your mother-in-law she needed to get the witnesses for the will.

You can also report her to the local prosecutor (known as a solicitor in South Carolina) and/or the state attorney general for possible prosecution for unauthorized practice of law. Finally, you may report her to the South Carolina bar, which regulates the activities of lawyers and also monitors possible violations of the rules on unauthorized practice of law. See the very bottom of the SC bar page on the unauthorized practice of law. Even if she had got the will done right she still broke the law in drafting the will.

Unfortunately, though, I think you likely have no direct claim against the notary because you didn't hire the notary and the notary had no legal obligations to you. That's probably why the attorneys are telling you there is nothing you can do to recover from the notary.

It was illegal for the notary to write the will if the notary is not also an attorney. In the U.S. "notary public" is basically authorized to do just one thing: attest that the person signing a document is really who that person claims to be. Notaries public in the U.S. are not lawyers and have no particular legal training or experience just by being a notary public. This is in marked contrast to the services of a notario publico in Mexico. The notario publico in Mexico is lawyer and has a much bigger role in legal matters than does the U.S. notary public. As justalayman points out, that unfortunately can cause confusion for new immigrants coming from Mexico or other civil law countries (e.g. those countries in Latin America that inherited their legal systems from Spain). This notary may have been taking advantage of that confusion. In any event, the only persons who may draft a will for another person in the U.S. is a lawyer.

The executrix would not sue the notary! The executrix and her sister tried to get another Will written by another notary when they saw what my mother-in-law left me! The notary they used did not get two witnesses either! It was a lot of underhanded tactics going on with my mother-in-laws dirty nieces! They shut me out when they knew she loved me because I took such good care of her son and her after her second son died. My daughter by my husband was stillborn. My husband's brother had three children who did nothing for my mother-in-law, these are the heirs! They did not even call her periodically to check on her while she was sick and aging! This hurt her deeply because she told me this and cried about it! Their dad died of heart attack or respiratory distress! I realize that I made a BIG mistake not getting my land while my mother-in-law lived! I feel so mistreated and betrayed by that notary and moma's nieces who are over estate! I was not meant to get the first and only inheritance I ever had! I am 66 years old! I just feel so upset about The South Carolina Codes Of Law not letting daughter-in-law be an heir!

 

[Zigner]

I just feel so upset about The South Carolina Codes Of Law not letting daughter-in-law be an heir!

That's the law in all states. You are not family.
What happened to your husband's share of the land?

 

[adjusterjack]

What happened to your husband's share of the land?

Good question. Where is OP's husband in all this? Are they divorced? Is he dead?

 

[Zigner]

Good question. Where is OP's husband in all this? Are they divorced? Is he dead?

I suspect (although am not sure) that the MIL had an old will that did not include the OP. There's a lot more going on here than we are being told, but that is because we're only being told the OP's side of the story.

 

[paprclip]

This may seem like an odd question but is this notary Hispanic/Mexican? Are you or your former mother in law a Mexican immigrant?

A notary in the US cannot write wills legally. Their purpose is to be a state approved witness of a signers identity. A notary public in Mexico provides is quasi attorney entity (from what I understand of them). Apparently many who have come from Mexico and emigrated to the US don’t understand that and have ended up using a notary for more than they are legally alllowed to do in the US.

I hate to burst your bubble, but there are places in the US where notaries CAN legally write wills (and other documents) for clients ... specifically Louisiana and Puerto Rico.

 

[Zigner]

I hate to burst your bubble, but there are places in the US where notaries CAN legally write wills (and other documents) for clients ... specifically Louisiana and Puerto Rico.

I removed the plagiarized portion of your post, while leaving the legally relevant (and, coincidentally, correct) portion of your post.

 

[Brokenbeam52]

Good question. Where is OP's husband in all this? Are they divorced? Is he dead?

My husband is dead! He got killed in car accident in 1998. He had already told his mom he wanted me to have his land, and she agreed! She had it written in the will plus a gift from her! I have a copy. The notary just did not get 2 witnesses and her nieces that are over her property were at the notary's house when she was getting will done; but, they claim they were in a different room!