What are my rights if my fiancee died without a Will?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
What are my rights if my fiancee died without a Will?
His daughter agreed to share the estate with me. He had a mortgage on a duplex which is where we lived and his brother rented the other side. We didn’ t put the house on the market because the brother is still trying to buy the home. I should mention the agreement we have was written up by an attorney and was notarized. Do I really have any legal rights and could i own half of this duplex and rent it out instead of selling the home instead of selling it? Not that it matters but we were together 20 years and I only have myself to blame for not getting married and my state abolished common law marriage 10 years ago.
Asked on January 23, 2015 under Estate Planning, Pennsylvania
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 9 years ago | Contributor
Only a will can transfer assets after death, and no other type of "agreement" will be enforceable to transfer assets after death unless that agreement fulfills all the requirements of a will. Also, an agreement with the daughter to share the estate would not be enforceable, since that kind of promise, made without any consideration (value to the other party, the daughter, to bind the agreement) is not enforceable. You are entitled to anything you can prove you own (e.g. paid for from your own money and did not gift to your fiance), or a share of anything you can prove you contributed to (e.g. furniture bought jointly), because you own those items (or a share therein) already; you are also entitled to anything you can prove he gifted (gave) to you during his life; but you are not entitled to anything owned by your fiance at the time of his death.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.