Q: can a deceased parent disinherit any of their children in louisiana for any reason my father died a week ago
Am I entitled to a copy of the will and do the children automatically inherit half of the community assets survived by my stepmother
A:
Generally, yes, a parent can disinherit a child for any reason unless the child is a "forced heir".
A "forced heir" is an child that is either (1) under the age of 24 at the time of your father's death; or (2) a child of any age who at the time of your father's death had a physical or mental medical condition severe enough that it might render that child incapable of caring for himself or herself in the future. This is vague language, but in Louisiana appellate courts have ruled that a person with bipolar disorder over the age of 24 was a forced heir.
You are not entitled to a copy of the will by law. However, you can request it from whoever you think might have it. You can also get a copy, once it has been presented for probate, from the Clerk of Court.
Often, I seen cases in which there is no will, but someonein the family asserts that there is one, and the supposed will never gets filed. The only way to find out for sure if to force the hand of the other side by petitioning the court to appoint you as Administrator. If there is a will, they will produce it pretty quick. But you would have to hire a lawyer to petition the court to appoint you as Administrator.
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