Are Verbal Wishes of a Decedent Binding

[JrMintAddict]

My question involves estate proceedings in the state of: Texas

My mother passed suddenly of breast cacner in June of 2007. During the time leading up to her death she had been taking care of her elderly mother. As her daughter, I took the load off my sick mother and cared for my Grandmother as my mother got sicker. My grandmother and I were VERY close, and had been for all of my life. After my mom died, my aunt, my grandmother's only other child, insisted she make a will and do it the very next day. Grandmother was dazed and in shock because she had just the day before lost her daughter, but my aunt went down to the stationery store and bought a home Will kit and insisted my grandmother fill it out and have it notarized. My grandmother did as she was told, she was 89 at the time. Months later, she confessed that in her hurried and confused state she listed my aunt, her only living child, as sole beneficiary because she didn't understand that she didn't have to list actual money amounts to be given to her heirs. In other words, she did not know what her networth would be at the time of her death (she was in the process of having to sell her house when she was making the will), so she left it all to her last living child and told her verbally to do what was fair to me upon her death. She said my aunt agreed. My grandmother had to sell her house and move in with my aunt a short time after the Will had been signed. My grandmother lived another 3 1/2 years after my mother's death.

In that time period she realized her mistake with the will, but was unable to correct it. She was not given the opportunity to rewrite her Will, as she relied on my aunt, her daughter, for her care. My aunt lives across the atate from me, so I was no longer close enough to go to her and help her. We had many conversations where she was beside herself with fear that her daughter was not going to abide by the verbal fairness clause she agreed to when the will was originally written. It worried my grandmother sick, so I just kept telling her not to worry, that I trusted my aunt, and I knew she would do the right thing. Well, now my grandmother has passed within the last 2 months, and it appears not only do I not get to see the will, but I am not to receive any of my grandmother's estate. Seems my grandmother was right when she told me she no longer trusted her daughter to "do the fair thing", and she was certain that all of the changing of the will so quickly after my mother's death, and her insistence on having to sell her house and move in with her, was all a ruse to get her hands on her entire estate.

Now, my question is, do I have any legal recourse to my deceased grandmother's estate when I am not mentioned in the will, but her and my aunt had a verbal greement and my grandmother and I had a verbal agreement? It's all hearsay, as there were no witnesses to what was said during any of the exchanges. Is there any possibility I can contest the will and have a chance of winning in the end? I promised my grandmother if my aunt decided to break the verbal agreement, I would pursue whatever course I could. She also told me she had handwritten her new wishes and she hoped they were carried out. I was there the day she died, and was the one who went through her things after her death and disposed of them, but did not find any final handwritten wishes, but my aunt could have easily found them before I got there, when my grandmother was in a coma, and could have disposed of the paper herself.

[mikectm2]

no. You should have had your grandmother sign another will that you made for her. It should have included some thing like, this is the complete and amended restatement of my Will. and Any previous Wills are null and void.

Sounds like you're up a creek.

you knew that your grandmother had listed your Aunt as the sole Beny So you knew that you were not to receive any of your grandmother's Estate (or you relied on a verbal commitment). Your grandmother even warned you about your Aunt's trustability.

even for a $200 deposit on selling a car, i write up a little something-or-other.

while grandma and u were fretting, you should have done something.