Rich Old Man Left More than $10M Estate to 11 Heirs – One Keeps Portion Worth Millions for Herself

An inheritance war tore a family apart after a woman disrespected her father's last wish and betrayed her family by keeping a fortune worth millions to herself.

A woman posting under Kaibafan77 turned to Reddit's "Legal Advice" forum seeking guidance from random strangers on the internet after fearing she would soon lose life-changing money of over a million due to a loved one's spite.

The Redditor said she was dreaming about starting a family and settling down with the millions-worth legacy from her late grandfather when a bomb dropped on her family, bringing out the worst in them.

The Original Poster (OP) asserted her grandfather was an unbiased man with a nearly $10 - $15M net worth. He had four children, a son and three daughters—one of whom was OP's mom, and he treated them equally. He craved the best for them and assumed his children would live up to his expectations.

However, this is where the worst reality sparked. The grandpa was too trusting of his children and hoped they would respect his wishes, even if it turned out to be his last. Having sensed his end of days, OP's grandpa sold 8 out of his 10 petite apartments and invested the money in four different annuities.

Although he wanted to sell the two other buildings, he died before he could sell them. The grandpa named his daughter "Megan" the sole power of attorney of these annuities and had a verbal agreement with her to split them equally with her siblings. Trusting she would abide by his last wish, he didn't mention their agreement in the will.

As for the two unsold buildings and remaining assets, OP's grandpa made a formal will to pass them on through a generation-skipping trust for his grandchildren. This money was set aside to be split equally among his 11 grandkids who would be able to claim their share when they turned 30.

A person claimed how OP's ordeal seemed familiar. "This is so eerily similar to what's going on in my family...I think we have to be related."

Since OP and her cousin were almost 30 at the time, they looked forward to getting their share soon and making the most of it. Unfortunately, their aunt Megan's vile plan got in the way, giving them a glimpse of how they may soon end up with nothing from their grandpa's estate.

It turned out that Megan disregarded her dad's last wish and felt entitled to all the money from the four annuities. This left OP's mom, aunt, and uncle with zero shares from the inheritance. Eventually, OP's mom and aunt Lola were enraged and wanted to sue Megan.

While OP felt it was right, her mom and aunt dropped another bomb by revealing their intention to challenge the will as well. OP asserted her mom and aunt decided this out of spite, unaware of how it would damage none but the grandkids. According to OP, her mom and aunt were hell-bent on depriving anyone of an inheritance if they didn't get anything.

At one point, OP and her cousins tried to convince their parents that they would share their money with them should the lawsuit against Megan go against their favor. But their parents wouldn't budge.

Fearing losing the life-changing money she dreamed of to kickstart her family and pay off all her debts, OP asked the internet if she should seek legal assistance to deal with her plight. "Should I hire my own lawyer?" she asked Redditors. "Is there a chance I could end up with nothing because of my mother and Lola's spite?"

Redditor Arudin88 offered some guidance stating the success of the parents' contesting the will would depend on location. "Location is important," the person proclaimed, adding:

"They have no basis to challenge Megan being the sole beneficiary either, assuming your grandfather was competent at the time, and this occurs in the US."

The Redditor then advised OP to hire a lawyer in the event her mom and aunt challenged the will using her grandfather's incompetence or persuasion as the basis.

Meanwhile, another person dived into the conversation citing how OP's ordeal seemed too familiar. "This is so eerily similar to what's going on in my family atm (at the moment). I think we have to be related. What state?" user amazinglymorgan asked OP.

"Well, we are probably not related, but I swear to you, my family is going through almost the exact same thing," the person guessed.

Like OP, the commenter's late grandpa had nearly 10M in savings and owned small apartment complexes. He made his daughter the sole power of attorney, and instead of respecting his wishes, she conspired to keep the money to herself.

OP said she was from Philadelphia and asserted she wasn't genuinely greedy over her grandpa's inheritance. "…but I don't want to lose out on over a million dollars that could really improve my life..." she concluded.

Questions to Ponder:

Would you trust your child with simply a verbal agreement concerning your family's inheritance?

Although OP's grandpa wanted his four children to split his annuities equally, he left this intention out of his will and trusted his daughter Megan would take care of it after their verbal agreement. However, it bred contempt in the family after Megan disregarded her father's last wish and claimed all the money for herself. Would you trust your child with a crucial clause and leave it undisclosed in your will?

Would you challenge your children/child's will out of spite only because your sibling/family member deprive you of your share?

OP's mom and aunt were furious with Megan for not giving them the inheritance intended for them. In addition to suing her, they decided to challenge the will, risking their kids' inheritance in the process. Would you do the same to your children and vent your frustration on them just because you were financially exploited by your sibling/family? How would you react if your sibling betrayed you the way OP's aunt betrayed her siblings?

If you liked this story, here's how a family united against their young child, causing a meltdown to snatch his inheritance from his grandparents.

All images are for illustration purposes only. Would you mind sharing your story with us? It might inspire & change someone's life. If you'd like to share your story, please send it to info@amomama.com.