Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Georgia

You need to contact a lawyer. Only by reviewing a will and looking at what action has already taken place in a case can it be determined what rights you have. Feel free to contact my office for a free consultation.

First, you do not indicate what state your father resided in at the time of his death. Second, you do not indicate what assets he had, whether he had a will or trust (although I assume he did as you indicate your are to inherit 25%).

Regarding an inventory and statement of disbursements, I am not sure why you believe you would be entitled to notice of the same. Some states do require notice as the beneficiaries must raise any objections (like in Pennsylvania for example).

What I suggest you do is contact the county/state where your father lived at the time of his death. See if an estate was ever opened for your father. If so, make a copy of all relevant papers - the will, the inventory, and an accounting. Enough time has passed that the estate for your father should be closed by now. Review the documents or pay an attorney in the county/state where the estate was probated to review the documents.

The mere fact that your brother got a house worth $400,000 means nothing. Did the will leave it to him outright? How was it owned/titled prior to your father's death? Was it even a probate asset?

What other assets were owned? Were there any claims against the estate? Were the probate assets exhausted by the spousal share and any claims? If so, this may explain why you received nothing.

Could your mother find you? It may be that your share was given to the estate as your family could not locate you. If that is the case, you would make a claim with the treasurer of the state where your father's estate was probated. I have questions - if your father died in 2003, why are you just getting around to this now?

Assuming that the estate was mishandled and that your mother cheated you out of your inheritance, you need to find out (a) if your father's estate could be reopened and your mother removed; or (b) if too much time has passed, whether you can bring some kind of legal action against your mother and/or any siblings and have a constructive trust imposed on assets that they received from your father's estate, assuming that the assets that are now possessed can be traced back to your father's estate.

A word of caution - litigation is very expensive and this is not a contigency fee case. Whether litigation would be prudent would depend on your resources and the level of assets involved here.