Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Massachusetts

It appears that the nephew has engaged in what we call "self-dealing". You should contact an attorney immediately. The success of any legal action against the nephew would depend on whether the uncle knowingly added the nephew to the deed or was either manipulated into doing so or lacked mental capacity. Alan Fanger www.lawfang.com

I agree with Attorney Fanger. You need to figure out whether the uncle knew about the transfer. As for not filing for probate, it is possible that the uncle had no probate assets, which would mean that no probate court filing would be required even if he left a will. Probate assets are any assets that the deceased owned in his own name that were not owned jointly with another or that named beneficiaries or were in a trust. It is possible that the nephew put all of uncle's assets into his own or joint names before he passed.

You have a tough road ahead, and as Attorney Fanger also said, you should act asap. In order for you to make a claim - to have "standing" - you must show that you have an interest in the estate. Would you or others have inherited from Uncle if he had passed without a will, or do you know of a will that named others besides nephew? If so, you should speak with an attorney to get something gong in probate court to start the process so you can at least find out what happened and then determine what if anything you can do about it.

Good luck to you -