Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in New York

Re: Can New Stepmother Cut the Stepkids out as Heirs?

If there is no Will then the wife gets the first $50K and one-half of the excess; the other half of the excess is divided among his children.

He can do just about anything in his Will except that his wife has the right to take at least one-third of his estate outright. The children can be left out.

The Will can be challenged if he was incompetent when he signed the Will; and for several other reasons.

Re: Can New Stepmother Cut the Stepkids out as Heirs?

If he has a will, it can be challenged on several different grounds.

If he does not have a will, you would be entitled to a share of his estate but so would his wife.

Should you like to discuss this or any other legal matter, you can e-mail me for more information about low cost face-to-face, on-line, or a telephone consultation with a lawyer in our office.

Re: Can New Stepmother Cut the Stepkids out as Heirs?

Sorry about your situation, which is not unusual, as I have been through many of these. Both Steve and Norman are correct that without a Will, your step-mother has priority over the natural children. Even if there is a Will, it may not be sufficient and, as they stated, could be contested, by you or her, depending upon what it says. More important is the fact that even with a Will you could lose out. Assets registered in the joint names of your father and SM pass outside the Will, as do any assets that have designated beneficiaries (like life insurance policies, retirement plan accounts and the like). So, if she has gotten him to put her name on accounts with him, changed a Deed to a house to include her in title, or named her as beneficiary of any life insurance policy or retirement plan account, she will get it automatically. Also, just being his wife can create rights in a retirement plan. Finally, most states have spousal protection statutes that prevent a spouse from being disinherited, so under any circumstance, you might have an uphill battle. Do you know if they have a pre or post-marital agreement, which might protect you? Expect some form of legal battle when your father passes away, even if it needs to be initiated by you. I suggest you get your father to a good estate planning attorney to put his life in order. This is a response to an Internet question and the reply is not intended to be legal advice or to create an attorney-client relationship.

Re: Can New Stepmother Cut the Stepkids out as Heirs?

I have seen what the other attorneys have written.

This happens quite often.

You really need to meet with an attorney, and see what you can do to pull your father back from this. You can not force your father to do anything, you can only try to persuade him to not give it all to his wife. Difficult situation.

If you would like, give me a call; I am in northern New Jersey. I will be happy to discuss this with you; the telephone consultation will be free.

My contact information can be obtained from the links below, just click on the Attorney Profile link. Let my secretary know you found me through LawGuru.

Disclaimer: Your question and any response does NOT create an attorney-client relationship between you and this law firm. You can not rely on the statements made by an attorney given over the internet. The exact facts of your situation, including facts which you have not mentioned in your question, may completely change the result for your situation.