Does this boy have a case?

[not2cleverRed]

I disagree with the previoius responses. As I understand the facts, the family line here is grandmother, boy's father (who predeceased grandma), aunt and uncle (thus the father, aunt and uncle are all siblings) and finally the boy -- the grandchild. Under Texas intestate succession law, grandma's estate would be divided equally among all her children if they were all alive when she died. But as the boy's father was dead when grandma died, his share goes to his son. In other words, if I have the facts right the son gets one third of the estate, and has just as much claim to the house as his aunt and uncle do.

Is there a requirement in TX that children be (at least partial) beneficiaries of life insurance policies and other assets like IRAS?

I agree on the intestate succession information, but OP seems to think it's unfair that the "boy" didn't get the whole house, since it was purchased with money received by grandma as the sole beneficiary of the boy's dad's life insurance, etc. Once grandma got that money, it was hers. That is what OP seems to be focusing on: the assets grandma was a beneficiary of, and the house purchased using some/all of those assets. Dad's estate is a non-issue at this point.

Grandma could have created a trust for the boy - that included the house. She could have had a will. She apparently had neither. And it is unclear what other assets she had. Boy's 1/3 could be 1/3 of a house (or its equity) - or it could be 1/3 of a lot more, depending on the size of the estate.

Whatever boy does, he should invest in therapy, because dad hated his ex-wife so much that he'd rather not provide for his own child.

Note: I didn't think twice about changing my primary beneficiary from my spouse to my minor child when the divorce was finalized.

 

[bcr229]

Before meeting again with an attorney I would go to the courthouse in the county where grandma passed away, and I'd get a copy of the probate record for her estate. There should have been an administrator appointed, a list of assets and creditors, beneficiary list, etc. I would also get the deed history on the house. Once he has those documents in hand he can take them to an attorney to see if there were any shenanigans.

Also are aunt/uncle brother and sister, or are they married and only one of them was grandma's child? Your friend may have been entitled to half of grandma's estate versus one third of it.

 

[Just Blue]

Before meeting again with an attorney I would go to the courthouse in the county where grandma passed away, and I'd get a copy of the probate record for her estate. There should have been an administrator appointed, a list of assets and creditors, beneficiary list, etc. I would also get the deed history on the house. Once he has those documents in hand he can take them to an attorney to see if there were any shenanigans.

Also are aunt/uncle brother and sister, or are they married and only one of them was grandma's child? Your friend may have been entitled to half of grandma's estate versus one third of it.

Good point!

 

[MarkMSPT]

Before meeting again with an attorney I would go to the courthouse in the county where grandma passed away, and I'd get a copy of the probate record for her estate. There should have been an administrator appointed, a list of assets and creditors, beneficiary list, etc. I would also get the deed history on the house. Once he has those documents in hand he can take them to an attorney to see if there were any shenanigans.

Also are aunt/uncle brother and sister, or are they married and only one of them was grandma's child? Your friend may have been entitled to half of grandma's estate versus one third of it.

Aunt and uncle are siblings. Also, grandpa is still alive. Grandma put the house in her and grandpa's names.

 

[Just Blue]

Aunt and uncle are siblings. Also, grandpa is still alive. Grandma put the house in her and grandpa's names.

This is pretty pertinent information.

 

[Taxing Matters]

Is there a requirement in TX that children be (at least partial) beneficiaries of life insurance policies and other assets like IRAS?

Certainly not if the "boy" is legally an adult. If he is still a minor there may be provisions to protect some support for him. I've not looked into that since I don't know how old he is.

 

[Just Blue]

Certainly not if the "boy" is legally an adult. If he is still a minor there may be provisions to protect some support for him. I've not looked into that since I don't know how old he is.

The "boy" is now 20...per OP's posting #9.

 

[MarkMSPT]

This is pretty pertinent information.

I am here to find information that hopefully could help an uneducated 20yo son of an uneducated mom, overwhelmed by their circumstances.

 

[not2cleverRed]

I am here to find information that hopefully could help an uneducated 20yo son of an uneducated mom, overwhelmed by their circumstances.

Omitting relevant facts and including irrelevant "background" means you're likely to get only MISinformation.

Stop airing other people's laundry.

 

[LdiJ]

Grandma bought the house for the boy. According to the mom, the intent was to put the title in his name once he reached adulthood. The only request from grandma was for mom to pay the property tax and home insurance.

Then grandma, unfortunately, make a mistake by not putting the house in trust or arranging things in some other manner so that the grandson would have exclusive ownership of the home when she passed. The aunt and uncle may or may not have known of grandma's intent, or they may have been greedy.

In any case, I agree that the grandson has a claim for 1/3 of the estate (I was not thinking about inheritance in my previous response) but he will likely need a lawyer to make that claim. Again, as was previously mentioned if the lawyer he spoke to isn't responding, then he needs to consider consulting another one.

 

[not2cleverRed]

Then grandma, unfortunately, make a mistake by not putting the house in trust or arranging things in some other manner so that the grandson would have exclusive ownership of the home when she passed. The aunt and uncle may or may not have known of grandma's intent, or they may have been greedy.

In any case, I agree that the grandson has a claim for 1/3 of the estate (I was not thinking about inheritance in my previous response) but he will likely need a lawyer to make that claim. Again, as was previously mentioned if the lawyer he spoke to isn't responding, then he needs to consider consulting another one.

Less, because apparently Grandma was survived by her husband.

 

[LdiJ]

Less, because apparently Grandma was survived by her husband.

Yeah, that info came way late in the thread. Which makes it even more confusing that aunt and uncle were able to grab the home.

 

[bcr229]

Yeah, that info came way late in the thread. Which makes it even more confusing that aunt and uncle were able to grab the home.

Or grandpa owns it outright now after grandma died, so he is permitting his two surviving children to live in it and they may even be renting it from him.

 

[zddoodah]

You waited until post #19 to provide absolutely critical information. That's really frustrating.

Does the boy have a claim to the house?

It sounds to me like the boy's grandmother bought a house for herself using proceeds from a life insurance policy that her son (the boy's father) had and that she allowed the boy and his mother to live in the house while she was alive. Although she was married, she apparently put title in her name only. It is not clear from what you've posted whether she bought the house free and clear with the life insurance proceeds or whether she used the life insurance proceeds as a down payment and financed the rest of the purchase.

Then, after the grandmother died, the boy and his mother were forced to leave the house - presumably by the executor(s) of the grandmother's estate (although it's not clear why the aunt and uncle would have been the executors rather than the grandmother's surviving spouse, but maybe the grandfather preferred that his children deal with it).

All that being the case, the house is (or was, depending on how long ago all of this occurred) owned by the grandmother's estate, and the boy has no claim to it. However, since the grandmother died without a will, her estate should be liquidated and the proceeds (after payment of all estate debt) should pass according to the intestate succession laws of Texas. Where the deceased is survived by a spouse and children who are also the surviving spouse's children, then the surviving spouse receives 100% of the deceased's community property, plus 1/3 of the deceased's separate property AND a life estate in any real estate. The balance is divided between her living children and the children of predeceased children. Since the boy is a child of the grandmother's predeceased son, the boy should inherit his father's share of the net estate. However, even if the house in question was the grandmother's separate property, the grandfather has a life estate (unless he wants to disclaim it), so the boy won't see anything from the house as long as his grandfather is alive.

Needless to say, this is a complicated situation, and the boy should rely on a local attorney for advice.

Grandma bought the house for the boy. According to the mom, the intent was to put the title in his name once he reached adulthood.

That intent, not backed up by any written documentation, is meaningless. If that was her intent, there were many things she could and should have done to ensure that her intend was carried out. That the boy's mother now CLAIMS that was the intent is self-serving and legally valueless.