Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Pennsylvania

I don't know where the real property is located but I do not think that son A has acquired the entire property by adverse possession JUST by paying taxes.

This problem illustrates the failure of everyone to do estate plannim. Mom and Dad ought to have thought more about this. Son B should have created a will when he divorced.

Assuming that the land is located in PA and that the parents died before son B got divorced, the share would be as follows:

Son A, Daughter-in-law A and Son B would all own 1/3 as tenants in common (bear in mind that I have not seen any deeds or other documents) as daughter-in-law B conveyed her share to the others. She cannot "waive" anything. The only scenario I could see where she waived was if the couple divorced and then mom and dad died and daughter-in-law B disclaimed her right to inherit the land under the will.

Power of attorney ended at son B's death. Girl B could only use the power of attorney during Son B's life to manage the property and finances of son B. Since son B does not own the entire property son B can't do anything with the share of son B other than to maybe sell it to son A and/or daughter-in-law A. Nobody else would want it unless other owners all agreed to sell the whole thing. So the share of son B can't be mortgaged, rented out or otherwise encumbered unless all agreed.

When son B died, the power of attorney ended as I have stated. Assuming that son B lived in PA and that he had not remarried at the time of his death, then all of his property would go to his children (I assume that there was only girl and boy B).

In this case, the property is still owned 1/3rd by son A, 1/3rd by daughter-in-law A and 1/3 (representing the share of son B) will now be owned by son B's children, girl and boy b (girl and boy b each have a 1/6th interest). This is contingent on the land being owed as tenants in common.

If they drew up a new deed when the land was inherited from mom and dad which said they were to hold the land as joint tenants with right of survivorship, then in that case, when son B died, his 1/3rd share automatically would have passed to son A and daughter-in-law A by operation of law and girl and boy B would have no rights whatsoever in this piece of land. They would split anything else owned by son B but not this land.

Now son A has paid the taxes and so forth. I do not know what the land is worth or if it was ever rented out or if anyone lived there. Son A and daughter-in-law A would owe their 2/3 of the taxes and maintenance. To the extent that they paid more than their fair share, they would have a claim against son B or his estate but I don't think that he could go back more than 2 years for this. If son B lived in the home rent free, then technically a rental value should be assigned to the home and 2/3 of the rental value should have been paid to son A and daughter-in-law A. A claim for rent that is owed would also be subject to a 2 year period of limitation.

Note of caution - if this somehow got into equity court, they might allow a claim going back further. I cannot ssay as I have not looked at any documents or deeds and don't know the circumstances.

The real question is that it is never a good idea for this many people to own property. Do girl and boy b really want the land? How much has son A overpaid? What is the land worth as of today and what would son B's share be worth? Has son A sought to buy out the shares of boy and girl B, albeit at a somewhat reduced rate as son A has been paying more than his fair share of the taxes?

I suggest that the parties may want to consult with a real estate litigation attorney in the county/state where the land is located to definitively ascertain their rights. Pay the attorney for 30-60 minutes of his/her time as it will be worth it. The attorney will need to see mom and dad's wills and the deed to the land. The attorney will also need to know when the parties died and when son B divorced in order. In the event that girl and boy B have a share, then the parties need to provide for a resolution of this situation so that son A and daughter-in-law A can lawfully acquire the remaining one 1/3rd.

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