Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Wisconsin

Ownership in real estate following the deaths of successive owners will depend upon the provisions of their wills (or intestate succession laws if there are no wills) and the willingness of survivors to fight for enforcement of the survivors rights by taking the cases to probate court and probating the successive estates. Here, two successive probate proceedings will be required in order to determine current ownership, regardless of whether or not the decedents had wills, which could become very expensive. The WI marital property law could also come into play, if the couples had not opted out of it before they died. However, with minimal estate planning before death, all of this litigation could easily have been avoided by retitling real estate to name survivors, creation of living trusts which own the real estate, creation of life estates, and numerous cost effective measures. You, or anyone else who owns real estate, therefore owe it to your relatives to consult with an experienced estate planning attorney as soon as possible. My answer here does mean that I am representing you, so be sure to consult your own attorney before deciding on what you should do, or contact my office at 262-633-3090, 333 Main St, Racine, WI 53403, during business hours if you desire formal representation. See me on the web at www.jayknixonlaw.com, or view over 15 years of my previous answers at http://www.lawguru.com/answers/atty_profile/view_attorney_profile/jknixonAttorney answers may contain advertising materials.