Hesperia, MI Estate Planning Law Firms & Lawyers

If your mother was mentally competent to sign a deed and you did not force her to sign it (and it sounds like you didn't force her), then they should not be able to claim the house as part of the probate estate. I highly recommend contacting a local probate attorney to help you with this matter.

Usually you name a beneficiary to a policy, so it does not pass pursuant to your Will. This information is only intended to give general information in response to an inquiry. It does not establish an attorney client relationship. This response is only based upon the limited facts presented and is merely intended to assist you in determining if you should contact an attorney to provide you with legal advice.

You are in a tough position. Your father's Will could have said, "I leave every penny of my estate to my children and leave my spouse ZERO." If the assets were jointly titled with her, the spouse would get everything, in spite of the terms of the Will. That is because asset titles supersede Will provisions. Assuming the assets were titled in your father's name alone and not jointly, the Will could then apply. If the Will left nothing to the spouse, she could still elect to "take against it." That would give her a right to a substantial portion of the estate, perhaps all of it, depending on the value of the assets. So more information is needed before determining if you would have had a valid claim. A long time has passed, and that could also prove problematic. The bigger problem I believe, however, is that you may not have been entitled to anything in the first place, regardless of the Will provisions. You can check the title to real estate online, in most Michigan counties. It is also true that the spouse would not legally be able to access or do anything with the assets, if she were not a joint owner or beneficiary of them. If she has been using the assets, it is more likely than not that she is the owner, by virtue of your father's passing.