Single Mother Does Not Contest Late Old Lady's Will, Later Steals Her Daughter's Inheritance

A teen’s single mother lived under the assumption that she was entitled to the wealth her daughter inherited from her late grandma and robbed her of her money.

Nearly ten years after her mom stole her inheritance, a 27-year-old woman decided to reclaim her money. She then turned to social media for help, citing, “Do I have any way of getting my money back?”

In a shocking twist of fate, Redditor frothing_out became the only grandchild to receive a portion of her rich grandma’s wealth. While the money could’ve helped her kickstart her future, her mom had some other plan brewing in her mind.

The Original Poster (OP) was the only grandchild and one of the six inheritors of her grandmother’s estate. Except for her mother, all her aunts and uncles were destined to take their rightful share from the property.

The grandmother intentionally excluded her daughter, OP’s mother, from the will. This was due to certain scars of the past, particularly the mothers’ hostility towards the family.

That said, the grandma considered OP’s future and thought it would be fair on her part to leave something for her then-teen granddaughter. However, she underestimated the extent to which her daughter would go to steal that money.

OP’s mother was single, and due to her ongoing personal problems with her maternal family, she’d forbidden OP from contacting anyone from that side of the family.

Considering the miscommunication, the grandmother still considered OP a rightful inheritor of her wealth. She passed away when OP was 16, and a year later, the will passed probate. While she still had a chance to contest the will, OP’s mother didn’t do it.

OP assumed her mom chose not to contest as it would be a costly attempt. However, it didn’t make much difference to the mother because she believed her daughter had just taken her place and she assumed she could secretly claim her right to the inheritance.

When OP’s mother became aware of the will, she felt entitled. She even discussed her intentions of taking the money for herself from her daughter. However, OP was uneasy and dismissed the idea as she didn’t want to disrespect her late grandma’s wish. The mother never gave up and constantly pressured OP into thinking she had to give her her inheritance.

[S]ome people think there was something suspicious about OP’s inheritance dispute with her mother.

When the formalities were finalized, OP’s aunt, who was also the executor, distributed the inheritance among the beneficiaries. OP barely turned 18, and her bank account at the time was tied to her mother’s.

As soon as the stipulated amount from OP’s inheritance was credited to her account, the mother quickly transferred all the money to her account as she had joint access to OP’s bank account.

OP was startled when she checked her bank account. Her mother left her $500 from the entire inheritance and used a large chunk of the money to settle her mortgage.

Nearly a decade later, OP and her mom had a significant fallout and cut contact with each other. This urged OP to fight back to reclaim the inheritance her mom defrauded, and she thought social media would help her through this tedious process.

“As far as I can see, once the estate passed probate and was distributed, you no longer need a lawyer who specializes in probate or estates,” Redditor masoj3k advised, adding:

“Your claim is one of theft, that your mother was not entitled to take that money from you… Another is she has the right to access that account as you were joint account holders. That said, you could argue that money was willed to you from your grandmother.”

The person suggested OP still seek a lawyer and find out if her mom had cash or assets to settle the claim, or it would be pointless litigating when she had no means to pay. However, some people think there was something suspicious about OP’s inheritance dispute with her mother.

Redditor apocaplatypus advised OP on the importance of understanding how the inheritance was held in her account, considering she was a minor at the time.

“You cannot legally inherit until you turn 18...Be mindful of costs vs. benefits and the potentially irreparable damage to your relationship with your mother,” the person stated.

OP responded that the will mentioned the money had to be held in trust until she turned 18 and claimed her mother made around ten times the money she swindled from her inheritance.

Though OP was aware her mother was financially well off to repay the money she defrauded, she hasn’t yet updated whether or not she reclaimed her stolen legacy, and it remains a mystery.

Questions to Ponder:

Can parents claim their children’s inheritance just because they feel entitled to it?

OP’s mother assumed she was entitled to her daughter’s inheritance despite the grandmother intentionally excluding her from the will. She’d even abstained from contesting it, assuming OP had simply taken her place and the money would somehow bounce to her. Do you think OP’s mother had the right to take her inheritance, considering her fractured relationship with her mother?

Would the mother still claim her right to OP’s inheritance if OP’s grandma included her in the will?

OP’s grandmother excluded her daughter from the will due to their ongoing personal issues. If it hadn’t been for the exclusion, it’s anybody’s guess if the grandmother would’ve considered her daughter a beneficiary. Even if she’d inherited her share, do you think she would let OP have her share to herself?

If you liked reading this story, you might like this one about a mother who robbed her daughter of her inheritance and was declared bankrupt.

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