Q: Unmarried cohabitating partner dies intestate, does the survivor need to prove that they own furnishings?
The deceased partner owned the home. The surviving partner provided almost all of the furnishings. The personal representative for the estate needs to provide inventory for probate. Do heirs have a claim on the survivor's personal property? How do you prove who owned what? There are some receipts in survivor's name and a lot of heirlooms from the survivor's family. There are dated digital photos of many of the heirlooms in their ancestor's house.
A: First question to ask is whether this is an issue. In other words, is the personal representative contesting the surviving partner's claim in the property? If not, then there's not much of an issue; the court is not interested in sifting through items of personal property. If there is an issue, then yes, the surviving spouse will need to establish ownership by any means available (e.g. receipts, photos, etc.), and ultimately there may need to be a probate court hearing to establish ownership.
Kenneth V Zichi agrees with this answer
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