Marquez, TX Estate Planning Law Firms & Lawyers

It is a crime to fail to file a will for probate. I couldn't guess what any particular attorney would charge. You should hire an attorney in the county where the mother resided at the time of her death.

If sister-in-law never presents the will to the court to probate it, then it doesn't do anything and it can say what it wants. In order to be effective to transfer anything, the will has to be brought into court. It is much more likely that sister-in-law will use joint ownership of assets, and not a will, to bypass this process. If you suspect foul play, get a lawyer started on this.

First, I would make certain that a will has not been probated or that an estate has not been opened. Generally, the county clerk can tell you if a will has been probated. After the county clerk confirms nothing has been done to settle either of the estates, I suggest you contact an attorney. You will basically need the help of an attorney to open back-to-back estate administrations for your father and grandfather. Note that this could be fairly expensive to do. Although the estate generally pays for the cost of administration (court costs, attorney fees, etc.), this could be a challenge if you don't have possession of any of the estate property.