Legal Question in Family Law in Louisiana

Re: who is the legal wife

Wife #1 is A legal wife, but if wives 2 and 3 were innocent of your father's prior marriages, then they have rights as well.....this is one of those circumstances where their rights may leave nothing left for heirs......you need an attorney to sort this out.......

Re: who is the legal wife

The real question is what the women knew. If wives 2 and 3 did not know that the prior marriages were not terminated, then they are "putative spouses". A putative spouse has all of the rights of a regular spouse because she married in good faith. If either of the surviving wives knew that the marriage was invalid, then she has no rights. If wife 1 was alive when the man died, she is a legal wife and still has her rights. Her heirs would inherit from her anything that she got from him. The death of wife 1 does not validate the other marriages.

Re: who is the legal wife

From what you have given there was only one legal wife, #1. The other two marriages are null and viod. However, we do have a theory concerning putative spouses, that is a spouse who has no knowledge of the pre-existing marriages may still have the rights of a bonafide spouse. Wife #2 is of no concern has your father did divorce her, but would need to know when he divorced wife #2. When he divorces wife #2 he more or less never abandoned wife #3. Again there is some impart as to what wife #3 knew. You need to contact an attorney and let him research your situation before you say anyone is the surviving spouse of your father. In one sense there is no legal wife period. However, wife #3 may be classified as a putative spouse whose hands are clean and would not suffer for her own ingnorance. Whoever are the decendants are the real hiers of your father and it really doesn't matter about who the spouse is. Wife #3 will recieve her 1/2 of the community if she contributed to the community by her own endeavors.