Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Georgia

My husband's elder brother, by deceit and fraud, got their mother to sign over her house to him over ten years ago. His mother and older sister lived in the home until both passed away, the sister just recently. My husband, always thinking the best of a person, thought his brother put the house in his name just to keep it out of Probate Court when mom died. Both sisters said, "Billy stole the house." As soon as the older sister died, this elder brother sold the home and pocketed the proceeds for himself. The mother's Will states that upon her death the house is to be sold and the proceeds distributed evenly between the living children. We have the original copy of the Will in our possession and have sent a copy to the elder brother but he refuses to divide the money between himself and the two other siblings. Do we have a chance of winning this case should we take the elder brother to court? Does the Will take precedence no matter when he stole the house or has it been too many years to pursue the case? The newspaper listed the house as being sold for $1 which he never paid even the $1 even. We live in Georgia but all this happened in Appalachia, VA. The elder brother lives in SC. Do we have a case at all?


Asked on 2/03/11, 2:10 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Phillip M. Cook Cook Legal Services, LLC

You would have an uphill battle trying to get the house back or your share of the proceeds. To start, you would need to have a court rule that the brother used fraud and deceit to get your mother-in-law to sign over the house. How do you do that now that the mother-in-law is gone? I strongly recommend that you consult an attorney -- one that is licensed in Virginia, since that's where the home is located (and presumably the mother-in-law passed here too?).

Best of luck.*****The above is for informational purposes only and does not create an attorney-client privilege.********

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Answered on 2/04/11, 6:03 am


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