Q: My widowed Mother passed away in Alabama and left 135 acres of land without a wiIl. It's still in her name.
It was understood from my Mother that it would be divided equally between us upon her death, but she did not put that in a will. There were 5 adult children when she died in 2009. My brother passed away in Dec. 2018. He leaves a wife and 3 adult children.
When the land is surveyed and divided, will it be divided in 4 or 5 parts? There are only 4 surviving children now.
A:
When someone dies without a Will, assets in their name pass to their "heirs at law." The heirs at law are determined at the time of death. Further, real property (land) vests in the heirs after two years. In your hypothetical I would suggest that the property will pass in 5 shares. The share of your deceased brother would pass according to his Will or if he did not have a Will, then according to the laws of intestacy. You may want to seek the services of a title company or a real estate attorney to sort out these ownership issues. Further, if you are dividing the property into equal shares, you will probably need to get the consent of all owners and as mentioned above the owners of your deceased brother's share may be in question. Good luck.
This answer is not intended to be legal advice, nor is it intended to establish an attorney-client relationship. I do not have enough information to provide you with an answer that you can rely upon. Please seek the services of a legal professional if you need specific guidance.
1 user found this answer helpful
Justia Ask a Lawyer is a forum for consumers to get answers to basic legal questions. Any information sent through Justia Ask a Lawyer is not secure and is done so on a non-confidential basis only.
The use of this website to ask questions or receive answers does not create an attorney–client relationship between you and Justia, or between you and any attorney who receives your information or responds to your questions, nor is it intended to create such a relationship. Additionally, no responses on this forum constitute legal advice, which must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. You should not act upon information provided in Justia Ask a Lawyer without seeking professional counsel from an attorney admitted or authorized to practice in your jurisdiction. Justia assumes no responsibility to any person who relies on information contained on or received through this site and disclaims all liability in respect to such information.
Justia cannot guarantee that the information on this website (including any legal information provided by an attorney through this service) is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. While we intend to make every attempt to keep the information on this site current, the owners of and contributors to this site make no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to from this site.
