Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in California
My Rights were lost in between Family Court & Probate Court
My Husband & I had a prenupt which was signed while I was pregnant w/ our second child.(current ages M-17, F-14) We were seperated and just beginning divorce proceedings when he died of a sudden heart attack in June/99. During the seperation, he manipulated all of his funds,Quit-claimed property, established a trust in his name, and hid behind his remainderman interest in 2 other newly established entities w/ his mother & sister. During this time he also took over 90K out of what was our joint accounts and placed these monies in these entities, while not helping to support his children nor myself for close to a year prior to his death.
I was told I would be in conflict w/ my children id I sue his estate for community property, because they are its beneficiaries. The attorney that has written the trusts, prenupts and divorce papers is now also the executrix's attorney for his estate.Do I have any rights?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: My Rights were lost in between Family Court & Probate Court
A lot depends on the scope of your prenuptial agreement. Assuming that it covers all his assets that he brought into the marriage and they were maintained through the marriage as your separate property, then you probably only have a community interest in the jointly owned assets, including but not limited to the funds in your joint bank account that he took.
If your children are the benficiaries of his estate/trust, then there wouyld be a conflict between your interests and their interests as to the extent you were able to establish that you had an interest or claim against his assets there would be a reduction in your children's assets. This should not keep you from asserting your rights, but that is your decision.
You reaslly need to discuss this with your own attroney who can review the documents and properly advise you. It probably would be a good idea to consider hiring an attorney for your children as it is possible that the attorney for the estate is not doing all that it can for either of yourr interests. For example, your children may be entitled to monetary support from your husband's estate from a family allowance or a probate homestead.
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