Can I make a claim on the estate if we did caregiving for free initially?
My wife and I have been caring for her ailing and completely disabled parents 24/7 for the past 2 years. They recently passed away. Him in Jan. her in Mar. We received no pay for our work. I now find that neither of us were remembered in the will. Her father made out both wills and was probably not competent at the time. I have been told that I could submit a bill to the estate for our work. I wondered if this would be reasonable, and if so how much? There is over $500.000 in the estate.
Expert Answer
If there was no agreement while they were alive that you and your wife would be compensated for taking care of your wife's parents, you cannot change the nature of your services as being done for pay as contrasted to being done gratuitously now. If their Wills were written while they were not of sufficient sound mind to make a Will or while they were under duress or undue influence from someone, the Wills may be found to be invalid. You should consult a lawyer and consider a challenge to the Wills. If the Wills are ruled by a court as to not be effective, their previous Wills, if any, will control. If they did not have previous Wills, the laws of intestacy will apply which would provide for payments to your wife.