Survivorship Rights (divorce papers) after death...

[Bamagirl15]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Alabama

When my Mother divorced in 1990, she (foolishly) had this written into her divorce with her ex:

1) The parties hereto agree that the plantiff (Mom) shall be awarded exclusive possession of a parcel of land on ___ Road and the Mobilehome on said property. The plantiff agrees to convey to the defenedent all of her right, title & interest in and all remaining land.

2) The parties hereto agree that the aforementioned parcel of land upon which the Mobilehome sits will be held by the parties hereto jointly with right of survivorship.

So, my Mother has just recently passed way (not yet a month ago). As of today, we have no heard from her ex-husband (divorced for 24 years now). Does # 2 indicate that BOTH the land and Mobilehome go to the ex or just the land? If he knows (or finds out), what must he do to claim the land and/or home? Is there a reasonable amount of time for the family to retain personal possessions within the home? The property tax records were all in my Mother's name only. Would it be worth consulting a local attorney to review the information and if so, would it be a "real estate" attorney? Thanks.

 

[LdiJ]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Alabama

When my Mother divorced in 1990, she (foolishly) had this written into her divorce with her ex:

1) The parties hereto agree that the plantiff (Mom) shall be awarded exclusive possession of a parcel of land on ___ Road and the Mobilehome on said property. The plantiff agrees to convey to the defenedent all of her right, title & interest in and all remaining land.

2) The parties hereto agree that the aforementioned parcel of land upon which the Mobilehome sits will be held by the parties hereto jointly with right of survivorship.

So, my Mother has just recently passed way (not yet a month ago). As of today, we have no heard from her ex-husband (divorced for 24 years now). Does # 2 indicate that BOTH the land and Mobilehome go to the ex or just the land? If he knows (or finds out), what must he do to claim the land and/or home? Is there a reasonable amount of time for the family to retain personal possessions within the home? The property tax records were all in my Mother's name only. Would it be worth consulting a local attorney to review the information and if so, would it be a "real estate" attorney? Thanks.

Yes, I would recommend consulting a real estate attorney. If both names are on the deed its a bit unusual for only one name to be on the property taxes. A real estate attorney can review the records to see if anything changed since the divorce.

 

[justalayman]

If both names are on the deed its a bit unusual for only one name to be on the property taxes. .

that's a good point to make.


why?

because what was written doesn't mean a lot if nobody ever created a deed legally establishing a joint tenancy with rights of survivorship.



so, was there a deed constructed that put the divorce agreement in force?

even worse though:

1) The parties hereto agree that the plantiff (Mom) shall be awarded exclusive possession of a parcel of land on ___ Road and the Mobilehome on said property. The plantiff agrees to convey to the defenedent all of her right, title & interest in and all remaining land.

2) The parties hereto agree that the aforementioned parcel of land upon which the Mobilehome sits will be held by the parties hereto jointly with right of survivorship.

those two statements are mutually exclusive of each other.

in #1, mom said she was granting all interest to the other party. In #2, it states she retains an ownership interest as a joint tenant.