Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Pennsylvania

will my father's will be negated buy his pending marriage?


Asked on 7/20/10, 12:47 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys

Not exactly. Is there a pre- or post-nuptial agreement? If there is one that waives all marital rights to inherit, take an elective share or administer the estate, then no. However, if there is no agreement, the only person who cannot be disinherited is a spouse. That means that if your father made a will and got married and never changed anything, his new wife could claim what is called an elective share. She would then inherit whatever the law provides as a basic amount. In addition, many states have laws that grant a yearly or family allowance to the surviving spouse. Since I do not know what state your father will live in at the time of his death, I can't tell you what the law says about the electve share. For PA's laws, see 20 Pa.C.S.A.

� 2201 - � 2211.

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Answered on 7/20/10, 6:48 pm


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