Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Missouri
Uncle-no will
My uncle passed away leaving no will. He has no children and his parents are deceased. My uncle has some cousins. He is my uncle because he married my aunt (dad's sister- and she passed away a year ago). My dad and one brother are still living. Who would be considered heirs? The blood cousins or my dad and his brother? There is some acreage that my dad's sister inherited from their mother. We were wondering is they would be able to get this, or if the land might go to some cousins on my uncles side of the family. Thank you
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Uncle-no will
If the acreage is in Missouri, it passed to your uncle when your aunt died, unless something else was decreed in her probate estate. Now that your uncle has passed away without a surviving spouse or children, it would pass to his next of kin. However, the law assumes that he had children that you did not know about, that maybe he did not know about. If they can be found, the property goes to them.
Assumng no children, it would go to his parents. Since they predeceased him, it would go to his siblings. If they predeceased him, then it would go to his nieces and nephews. If he had no siblings, then it would go to his parents siblings (his aunts and uncles) If they predeceased him, then it would go to their offspring. That is how the cousins get in, but only the ones tht are blodd or adoptive children of aunts and uncles, ot their step children. Those step children are in the same position as you. There are some variables that can change the order in which property is distributed, Consult directly with an attorney before deciding how to act.
Good Luck
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