Mad River, CA Estate Planning Law Firms & Lawyers

A trust acts through its trustee. The trustee must sign papers and direct the actions of a trust. The trust can be the only plaintiff in a lawsuit, but its actions as plaintiff are directed by the trustee. The trustee can be a corporation or an individual.

Generally not, as long as he is not on the title. If he makes payments on a mortgage, or pays taxes, etc., then he has an argument that he should be entitled to something. He has no inherent rights, however, as he would have if he were married to you.

Your summary is very confusing. The land DOES have title. Ownership can be confirmed with the county register of deeds. The question is who gets title, based on your circumstances. You do not mention whether your aunt and/or uncle had a Will or Trust. You do not mention the order of death. An "illegitimate child" is considered a legitimate child, for purposes of inheritance. There is a presumption that a child born to the wife during a marriage is the product of that marriage. You may be able to prove otherwise, but the burden of proof would be on you. In the absence of a Will, a Trust, or a deed indicating who the owner was to be upon the death of the prior owners, state law would apply. The intestate law dictates who is the "next of kin," for inheritance purposes. That might be you, or it might be you and a bunch of other people, or it might be someone else, completely, depending on the facts which are not included in your summary. You appear to be long overdue for a meeting with an attorney. I believe that is the only way you will be able to make sense of this.