If my husband does not have a will. If he dies, can his ex-wife/kids take half of what I owned before we married?

Question

I live in Alabama.  My 1st husband passed away leaving me with enough money to pay off our home, purchase a vacation home and have $60,000 in savings.  He also left me several retirement pensions which I have not touched.  I have remarried and my current husband is not on the deeds to the land/homes, bank accounts or the retirements.  My current husband does not have a will.  If he dies, can his ex-wife/kids take half of everything (the things I owned before we married) or can she only take half of what we have acquired since we married?

Jack T. Carney · Answer

Without confirmation about how your assets are titled, I am happy to speak in general terms.  First, if your husband dies before you, his ex-wife would have no claim to any assets of his estate (unless of course he agreed otherwise in a divorce agreement).  The law states that if someone dies without a Will, his children (from the prior relationship) and his wife (you) would split his probate estate.  However, if nothing is titled in his name or if it is titled jointly with you, then he would have no estate and nothing would pass to his children.  The children would only have access to assets in his name alone at death.  No one would have access to assets in your name alone. 
 
All that being said, a Will is an incredibly important document and I am a firm believer that every individual should have one.  I would encourage him to consider it.  Good luck!

Q: If my husband does not have a will. If he dies, can his ex-wife/kids take half of what I owned before we married?