Possible inheritance stolen??

[dommwith2ms]

Hi my name is Dominic and I am located in California and I believe that a while ago it is possible that my aunt had stolen the inheritance I was suppose to receive from my grandmother/father, so from the beginning about 2 years back when I was 17 years old my grandmother was diagnosed with stomach cancer and she later passed away and maybe not even 24 hours after she had passed away my father passed away, I received only his truck and my other family mentioned to me that since there was no will for my grandma when she passed all her belongings would be given to the next of kin (my father) and since he died without a will and I am his only son, I should've received all the inheritance he had just got from my grandma passing away. I have been turned down by every lawyer I came in contact with before I turned 18, I haven't contacted any lawyer until now because I have been dealing with other legal issues as well with jeopardizing my legal situation so I haven't had the money or even the time to pursue this, my aunt said before in front of my girlfriend and I that because the reason I did not inherit the items from my grandmother is because it up to 24 hours (she might've said a week, I am not sure) until the items transfer to the next of kin, but since my father passed so soon it all had went to her instead. But overall I am just curious as to if what she is saying is true, from what my family is telling me everything she told my girlfriend and I was a lie and she had stolen everything from me, from what my other aunts (my grandma's sisters) is that I should've received a trust fund, a house property, and a car, as well with a few other misc. items. If anyone at all could please give me some insight on this situation I would appreciate it more than anything, I've been in such a rut since everything has happened and with my family telling me this back and forth it would really clear my mind to know who's right and what's the right thing to do.

 

[HRZ]

Did grandmother die with a will or without a will?

THere is a 120 hour survivor rule in CA if one dies wo a will, and if she died wo a will then there is a paper presumption Dad died first ....in many states your place in line should have been preserved to get Dads share ..I simply don't know if your place was saved in CA but I suspect others here know.

W a will you'd need to go read will to see if it addresses a survivor requirement and alternate distributions .

 

[dommwith2ms]

There was no will with anyone

 

[HRZ]

Next step is to sort out if your place in line as grandchild was preserved ...await some more intune commentators

 

[HRZ]

there is an anti lapse law in CA ..but it applies to wills....I simply don't know if it applies to intestate succession

 

[xylene]

What is the value of this inheritance?

 

[not2cleverRed]

I suspect that the aunt is full of hogwash.

there is an anti lapse law in CA ..but it applies to wills....I simply don't know if it applies to intestate succession

Of course it only applies to wills! That is because the beneficiary of a will can be (almost) anyone, and just because you want to leave your pet rock collection to your best buddy Billy Bob doesn't mean that you'd want it to go to his good for nothing spouse and kids, and if you wanted his spouse and kids to get it, should he predecease you, you'd've said so.

Grandma died without a will. Dad died without a will. Therefore, intestate laws are what matter, except for the portion of the estate that was in a Trust. The Trust, and all assets in the trust, is dealt with separately, in accordance with the who was to be the beneficiaries of the trust.

Grandma had surviving descendants: a son (barely) and a grandchild. The whole kit and caboodle of everything not in the trust should have gone to your Dad, and, should Dad predecease her, you. The *only* way grandma's sister should have gotten anything under intestate succession would be if there were no descendants (children, grandchildren) as defined under California Probate Code Sections 6450-6455.

The only issue of ambiguity I see here, from what you posted, is the Trust Fund (assuming all other assets were in grandma's name only, not in the trust, and not owned jointly with her sister or other party). Most vaguely competent people, when setting up a trust fund, include what happens should beneficiaries predecease them. For example, the phrase, "per stirpes" would mean that your father's share, if any, would go to you and your siblings, if you had any, equally. However, it is possible that your grandmother established the trust before you were born, and had a clause that her sister would be the beneficiary, should your Dad predecease her. It is also possible that your grandmother only had her sister as a beneficiary.

 

[HRZ]

AT least so far it seems very likely that everthing grandmother had to in her name should have passed to you . Who was executor or administrator ? Go,read / copy the records on file..they are public records .


And things properly in her trust should have passed as per the trust ...and for that you sort of need to read the trust !

 

[justalayman]

Is your aunt also the child of the deceased grandmother? If so, she would inherit at least an equal share of her mothers estate. That would remove 1/2 of the net value of your grandmother’s estate that wouldn’t transfer to you

my aunt said before in front of my girlfriend and I that because the reason I did not inherit the items from my grandmother is because it up to 24 hours (she might've said a week, I am not sure) until the items transfer

actuslly that is precisely the reason you would inherit the assets. Otherwise your father (technically his estate if he had survived his mother by more than 120 hours) would have inherited the assets that would now go to you

that I should've received a trust fund, a house property, and a car, as well with a few other misc. items.

First, you are never due a specific asset unless it is written as such in a will. Otherwise you are due the value of your share of the estate. The trust fund has nothing to do with this situation. A trust is a separate issue and dealt with separately. As I stated, you are due the value of your share of the estate. While that can be in specific assets, the administrator of the estate can pay your share however they determine. You have no right to ownership of tbe house or car. They could be converted to cash and you given your share or they could have been given to other heirs and you recieve something else of equal value.

Bottom line; you are due your share of the value of the estate. How that is delievered to you can vary.

The right thing to do is hire an attorney to assist you. That is going to be an out of pocket expense. Do not expect the attorney to work on a contingency. While some do if the estate is large enough, typically this is an hourly fee service.

 

[Dandy Don]

If you know the county where your father and grandmother died, look up online court records to see if any probate was ever opened up for either party and if there was, you can go to the courthouse to look at the files to see who handled the estate and exactly how the estate was handled.
There will not be any information in the files about the trust, just the will only.

Then have a consultation with a local attorney to find out if the attorney can help you with anything. It does not look good for you right now, because if you had been named as a beneficiary in the trust, the trustee should have notified you by now if he/she knew how to contact you. The story you were told about a trust may be a lie.