Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Georgia
My father died after his wife. My sister and I are his hiers. A woman told us that they were married in 1982. She wants his estate. My father married my step mom in 2001. I have never seen my father with this woman and don't know her. Does have any legal rights in the state of Georgia?
3 Answers from Attorneys
Rather than asking about "rights" on a website, when you don't know the facts (and we certainly don't know), you need to contact a lawyer Monday who can ascertain the facts, check the records, and then appropriately deal with the situation. That could be a simple letter to the woman telling her to go away, or it could be dealing with a larger problem if they were married.
Since no one here knows why you feel the spouse is not an heir, or if she is/was a spouse, no one here can answer you. Get together all your paperwork and facts and see a lawyer Monday morning.
It doesn't matter necessarily that your father married this woman in 1982. Were they ever divorced?
And you do not pay this woman a dime yet. If she is claiming some sort of spousal rights, then she needs to file appropriate paperwork, not just pop up and demand money. I agree with my colleagues that first thing tomorrow, you and your sisters need to find a probate attorney who practices in the county/state where your father's estate would be probated to assist you with your father's estate. You need to find out if there are probate assets and whether an estate needs to be probated. If it does, then you need to address the situation of this woman with the probate attorney. It may be that he can contact her and demand details. Or it may be that you do nothing until she files a claim. You do not indicate whether your father had a will or not. Take a copy of any will to the attorney as well.