legal matter........

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jen0212001
iVillage Member
Registered: 01-04-2002
legal matter........
4
 Thu, 09-04-2003 - 3:22pm
Recently my husbands father died. He did not leave a will & my husbands 2 sisters & niece are causing a lot of problems over there fathers belongings. There father wasnt married but he was living with his girlfriend for 24 years. The belongings are in her house & considering he left no will I don't think she can be forced to give them anything. My husband doesnt want any part of the situation & thinks they are going about this all wrong. My husband has no problem with the girlfriend but the others do. They think they can get the police over there with them to get his stuff, although he didn't have very much. They don't want to be rational & calm about this. Over time my husband & I think she will give some of his things to us. Can they really bring the police to her house like that in this situation ?
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lizwil98
iVillage Member
Registered: 05-20-2003
In reply to: jen0212001
legal matter........
 Thu, 09-04-2003 - 3:35pm
I would say that as your father had been living with this lady for 24 years and as she owns the house, the police are unlikely to get involved. After all, how could anybody prove after all this time that the stuff actually belonged to him?

Obviously, you are going about it the right way. The fact that they were not married to me makes no difference - they were together. A piece of paper doesn't matter. Your relatives are obviously making a decision based on the fact that they didn't like this woman or something, which has nothing whatsoever to do with them.

Its too bad that they can't be sensible like you are. If you bide your time and get along with your father's partner, as you say, there is a very good chance that you will be able to get some things of his.

To me - she is his wife in everything but name and she has a right to keep his stuff.

dreamweaver_20874
iVillage Member
Registered: 04-01-2003
In reply to: jen0212001
legal matter........
 Thu, 09-04-2003 - 4:55pm
First, let me extend my sympathy for the loss of your husband's father. No one can remove or have removed anything from your father's girlfriend's home without her consent. Not having a will changes everything. Unless the family members can prove that he meant for them to have his possessions, they stay with her. Money and property, however, are a different matter. If he had money and property and left no will, the state will sell off his property to satisfy any creditors. Then after all beneficiaries are located, they normally split between the family. This is why it is so important to leave a will. Even if you only have $5 in a bank account, the will keeps people from receiving any property they are not due. The police will not get involved in this. They are going to have to go through the Probate Section of Court. They have no legal rights to anything in that woman's house. Good luck and let us know how this ends.

Dream

jen0212001
iVillage Member
Registered: 01-04-2002
In reply to: jen0212001
legal matter........
 Thu, 09-04-2003 - 5:09pm
He has no properties & no large amount of money saved. It's just about the belongings in her house that were in his room.
dreamweaver_20874
iVillage Member
Registered: 04-01-2003
In reply to: jen0212001
legal matter........
 Thu, 09-04-2003 - 5:26pm
Then they will be at her mercy. It will be her decision how his things are dispersed, if at all. The police do not have any authority to walk into someone's home and demand that the property be given to someone (other than stolen property). Your husband is wise to stay out of this. If there is a certain item that he would like to have in rememberance of his dad, I suggest he contact the girlfriend and ask kindly. She may just give it to him. Good luck.

Dream

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