When he died in 1972, my father had a will leaving all

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When he died in 1972, my father had a will leaving all

When he died in...

When he died in 1972, my father had a will leaving all property to his wife, my step-mother. I understand she is now dead. I have no idea if she died intestate or with a will.

Lawyer's Assistant: Since estate law varies from place to place, can you tell me what state this is in?

Dad's property included several investment accounts which have grown in value over the last 40 years. The account brokerage houses are intending to surrender the property to the State of Connecticut, where my father lived and died. I have had no contact with step family over these years and wish to claim the escheated property as his heir. Clearly, the property has been abandoned by former step children. What do you think?

Lawyer's Assistant: What documents or supporting evidence do you have?

A birth certificate showing I'm father's son; Brokerage records setting out that dad owned the relevant accounts

Lawyer's Assistant: Anything else you want the lawyer to know before I connect you?

No thanks.

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Customer reply replied 1 year ago

That's sort of my point. Did he actually give property to his new wife. If so, why is the property on the list to escheat. My argument is that dad abandoned the property as did step-mother. (Moreover, he didn't disclose the property during the divorce proceedings two years prior to his death.)

Customer reply replied 1 year ago

It's been ages since I looked at his will but let's understand he had a remainder clause benefiting his present wife. So let's also assume that if he knew of the property and wife knew of the property, she would have changed ownership of the account to recognize her ownership. Instead, for the past forty years, my mother has continued to receive account statements written to my father at my mother's address. If I have no claim to the property, who does and how does a forty year abandonment affect their claim?

Customer reply replied 1 year ago

I do understand that and don't mean to become argumentative but the law of the State of Connecticut doesn't seem to require an intent element; I don't see anywhere in the statutes that abandonment must be a knowing act. "Unclaimed" or abandoned property simply reverts to the State after 3 to 5 years inactivity. Then it remains with the state until the owner or his heir claims it. In that his wife appears to have abandoned the property or left it unclaimed, don't I have a rightful claim as an heir?

Estate Lawyer: TJ, Esq., Attorney replied 1 year ago

Hi again.

Reread what you wrote above. The answer is in your own words: "Then it remains with the state until the owner or his heir claims it." Based on the facts that you wrote, you are neither the owner, nor are you the owner's heir.

As for the law regarding abandoned property, I had assumed that you were referring to the common law definition of abandoned property. Per the Connecticut Supreme Court: "Abandonment, in turn, has been defined as the voluntary relinquishment of ownership of property without reference to any particular person or purpose." Favorite v. Miller, 176 Conn. 310 (1978). The definitions of "abandoned" or "unclaimed" that you are apparently referring to is from a narrow statute that applies to banks or other institutions that want to stop servicing old and unused accounts. That statute, however, has nothing to do with whether your step mother or her heirs still have ownership rights. Whether or not they abandoned their ownership interest in the accounts depends on the definition that I provide above (i.e., voluntary).

I wish that I had better news for you, but the facts that you shared just don't support a viable argument.

TJ, Esq., Attorney

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Customer reply replied 1 year ago

I get it. Thanks for all the research.

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Estate Lawyer: TJ, Esq., Attorney replied 1 year ago · Answer 1

Hello and thank you for the opportunity to assist you. My name is ***** ***** I will do my very best to answer your legal questions.

Unfortunately, if your father gave his accounts to his wife, then you would have no claim to the accounts as your father's heir. Simply put, you cannot inherit something that your father's estate does not own. Accordingly, the only way you could inherit the accounts would be through your step mother. Since you aren't related to your step mother by blood, you wouldn't be an heir unless there is a will that names you as a beneficiary.

I am truly sorry for the bad news, but please understand that it would be unfair to you (and unprofessional of me) to provide you with anything less than an honest response. However, if your concerns were not satisfactorily addressed, then please let me know and I will be happy to clarify my answer.

Also, despite the bad news, I would certainly appreciate it if you remember to provide a positive rating via the stars, as it is the only way that I'll get credit for answering your question(s). Thank you. :)

Estate Lawyer: TJ, Esq., Attorney replied 1 year ago · Answer 2

Hi again.

Earlier you wrote: "my father had a will leaving all property to his wife"

That doesn't sound like he abandoned the property. It sounds like he gave it all away. The bot***** *****ne is that based on the facts that you shared, it doesn't sound like you will be successful in your arguments. But if you have evidence that he didn't actually give the property to his wife, then you may very well have a viable case. It really just depends on the facts. My prior answer was based upon the facts that you shared, but if there are different facts, then the answer may be different.

Estate Lawyer: TJ, Esq., Attorney replied 1 year ago · Answer 3

Hi again.

Even if she didn't know of the property and never changed the accounts to her own name, she inherited the accounts per the will. Based on the facts that you shared, the accounts would be owned by your step mother's heirs. I don't think a 40 year abandonment affects the claim because what you describe is not an abandonment. An abandonment occurs when the owner of property knowingly opts to abandon his claim to the property.

The underlying problem that you have is that it sounds like your father gave all of his property to your step mother, and since you aren't related to your step mother, you are not her heir. That means even if she did abandon the property, you have no more claim to the property than I do. In other words, the fact that your father had at one time owned the property does not make the property available to his heirs if the new owner later abandons the property ... i.e., the property does not revert back to your father.

When he died in 1972, my father had a will leaving all

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