What rights do the children of a previous marriage have if spouse dies?

Q: If you re-marry someone with grown children, can the children inherit something if he dies.  Can they inherit something even though they haven’t seen him in years, and didn’t attend the funeral?

A: If he has a will, it should spell out to whom his estate passes to. If you are a spouse and are not mentioned in the will, you can file a Spousal Election Against Will in the Register of Wills and request and seek a one-third share of certain property of the deceased person acquired during the marriage. If he has no will, the biological children will inherit a share of the estate along with the spouse. As I am not aware of all of the facts here, I strongly suggest you discuss this with a lawyer.

If you feel like this issue relates to you, or a problem that you are experiencing, please contact me so that we can discuss your situation.