Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Missouri

In Missouri a will can only be admitted for probate within a year of death. If no will has been admitted within a year, then things can pass by inheritance. Generally, when a married person dies with children of a different union, most of their stuff gets split 50% to surviving spouse and 50% to children of different union. Your wife may want to start making her claim now. It is tricky and there are exceptions to that general rule. She should consult directly with a probate attorney in your area soon. It may be too late, if property has already passed to her step siblings.

Good luck

Although there is no way to know from the information provided, your scenario leads one to believe that everything was held jointly between your wife's father and the stepmother, and if that were the case the will would have been ineffective anyway. If property was titled in your father-in-law's name only then some sort of probate proceeding would have been required and your wife most certainly would have been entitled to notice.

There is a statute which provides a legal remedy to obtain a court order for the production of any Will. You, or your wife, should consult with an attorney.