What is the meaning of these sentences from a will?

[Lippy]

Jurisdiction

Illinois

I give & devise my real estate to my daughter,_, for and during her natural lifetime. After her death , the remainder to my daughters,_,_,_ & _. If any of my daughters be deceased at the time of my death, then their share shall pass to their children living at the time of my death.

The unmarried daughter lived in her fathers residence during her lifetime. She is now
deceased & so are 3 of the remaining 4 daughters. So 1 daughter remains and there are 10 grandchildren from the 3 deceased daughters. Who owns the property ?

 

[adjusterjack]

It was a life estate.

See the following for an explanation:

Life estate - Wikipedia

Since all the daughters but one died after the father's death then the property goes to the one remaining daughter who should be talking to a lawyer to make sure the transfer of ownership is done properly.

 

[Lippy]

It was a life estate.

See the following for an explanation:

Life estate - Wikipedia

Since all the daughters but one died after the father's death then the property goes to the one remaining daughter who should be talking to a lawyer to make sure the transfer of ownership is done properly.

The remaining daughter is 97 years old & suffers greatly from dementia. She is currently in a nursing home & her daughter ( another grandchild ) handles all her personal & financial affairs.

 

[army judge]

I give & devise my real estate to my daughter,_, for and during her natural lifetime.

No one can even THINK about ownership until THIS daughter dies.

She has a life estate, and she can USE the property until her demise.

If any of my daughters be deceased at the time of my death, then their share shall pass to their children living at the time of my death.

It appears you are still alive.

You own the property and will continue to do so until your death.

If you're writing to us from your grave, you're a very clever ghost.

If you're from the beyond, you know more than I do, so I'll let you answer your question.

 

[adjusterjack]

It appears you are still alive.

I think the father is long dead and Lippy was quoting the will.

 

[Tax Counsel]

Since all the daughters but one died after the father's death then the property goes to the one remaining daughter who should be talking to a lawyer to make sure the transfer of ownership is done properly.

We don't know when the other daughters died, and that's critical. If, as you say, they all died AFTER the father died then you have it wrong. The obvious intent of the will is a life estate, and the life tenant was D1, with the remainder persons being D2, D3, D4, and D5. The life tenancy and remainder interests all arise at the time the father died (even though the will implies that remainder interests arise after the life tenant dies — that was a bit of sloppy drafting because that is not how it works). Thus, D2, D3, D4, and D5, if all living at the time the father died, all shared the remainder interests. Once they received those remainder interests, when they died their interest in the property passes to their beneficiaries or heirs per their will (or if they had no will then to their heirs by state intestate succession law). So without reading their wills (if they had wills) it would be impossible to say who the present owners other than the one daughter who is still living presumably still owns her share of it.

If one or more of the daughters died before the father died, then evidently that daughter's remainder interest was to instead go her children.

 

[zddoodah]

The unmarried daughter lived in her fathers residence during her lifetime.

Is "the unmarried daughter" the same person referred to in this sentence:

I give & devise my real estate to my daughter,_, for and during her natural lifetime.

???

The unmarried daughter lived in her fathers residence during her lifetime. She is now
deceased

I guess we're supposed to assume that the quote in the first paragraph of your post is from "her father[']s" will. Correct.

If so, did the unmarried daughter die before or after her father died (although, for purposes of your question, it doesn't really matter)?

One other point of clarification is needed: The first paragraph of your post creates a life estate, with Daughter A being the life tenant and, apparently, four other daughters (Daughter B, Daughter C, Daughter D and Daughter E) being remaindermen -- so five daughters in total. Is that correct?

The unmarried daughter . . . is now
deceased & so are 3 of the remaining 4 daughters. So 1 daughter remains and there are 10 grandchildren from the 3 deceased daughters. Who owns the property ?

So...A, B, C and D are now dead and E is living, and B, C and D left 10 grandchildren. Correct?

In order to answer your question, we need to know which of B, C and D (if any) died before the father died. Without that information, it is impossible to answer your question. And, if any of B, C and D died after the father, then we'd need to know how their estates were disposed of to know who now owns their interests in the property.

all the daughters but one died after the father's death

Nothing at all in the original post supports this statement. In fact, the OP provided no information at all about when anyone died relative to anyone else.

 

[army judge]

I think the father is long dead and Lippy was quoting the will.

I have no idea who died, if anyone.

I can guess, but if I did, that amounts to nothing more than speculation.

 

[Lippy]

I think the father is long dead and Lippy was quoting the will.

The father died in 1975, D1, the one with the life estate died in 2018, D2 is alive , D3 died in 2004, D3 died in 2000 & D4 died in 1992.

 

[Lippy]

Yes there are 5 daughters, 4 died after the father. He died in Aug. of 1975 & his will was executed in 1976. The daughter with the life estate never married ( no children), died in Oct. of 2018, she lived in her father's home her entire life. The 10 grandchildren from daughters 3,4 & 5 are the heirs of daughters 3,4 &5.

 

[zddoodah]

Based on your follow up posts, all we can tell you is that D2 owns a 1/4 interest.

Who owns the other 3/4 interest depends on the terms of the wills of D3, D4 and D5 and how their estates were administered after their deaths.

You wrote that D3, D4 and D5's 10 children were their heirs, but it may not be that simple. We would need to know if each of D3, D4 and D5 had a will. Also, were any of them survived by a spouse? What happened with the administration of their estates? Did any of the administrators/executors of the estates of D3, D4 and D5 include the remainder interest in this life estate as an asset of the estate? Were any of the states upside down financially? Given that it's been 14 years since the last of them died, that last part might not matter.

You didn't say what your role is in this story, but anyone with an interest or potential interest in this who wants to sort this out should consult with a local attorney.

By the way, not to kick dirt on the grave of a man who died over 40 years ago, but this arrangement was a terrible idea. The best case scenario is that there are 11 different people who own 25% or less of the property, and the likelihood that those 11 peoples' interests are all exactly aligned is pretty slim. This is likely going to be expensive to sort out -- especially given the status of the one surviving daughter who owns the largest interest.

 

[Lippy]

The father died in 1975, D1, the one with the life estate died in 2018, D2 is alive , D3 died in 2004, D3 died in 2000 & D4 died in 1992.

correction. D3 died in 2004, D4 died in 2000, & D5 died in 1992.

 

[Lippy]

Based on your follow up posts, all we can tell you is that D2 owns a 1/4 interest.

Who owns the other 3/4 interest depends on the terms of the wills of D3, D4 and D5 and how their estates were administered after their deaths.

You wrote that D3, D4 and D5's 10 children were their heirs, but it may not be that simple. We would need to know if each of D3, D4 and D5 had a will. Also, were any of them survived by a spouse? What happened with the administration of their estates? Did any of the administrators/executors of the estates of D3, D4 and D5 include the remainder interest in this life estate as an asset of the estate? Were any of the states upside down financially? Given that it's been 14 years since the last of them died, that last part might not matter.

You didn't say what your role is in this story, but anyone with an interest or potential interest in this who wants to sort this out should consult with a local attorney.

By the way, not to kick dirt on the grave of a man who died over 40 years ago, but this arrangement was a terrible idea. The best case scenario is that there are 11 different people who own 25% or less of the property, and the likelihood that those 11 peoples' interests are all exactly aligned is pretty slim. This is likely going to be expensive to sort out -- especially given the status of the one surviving daughter who owns the largest interest.

Thank you for your response. I can't answer the questions you raised right now. I'll need to talk to my cousins to get more info. ( I am 1 of the 10 grandchildren)

I do have an additional question. Can anyone inherit the property from a will written by the life tenant ?

 

[army judge]

Can anyone inherit the property from a will written by the life tenant ?

No, a life tenant can only use the property during the term of the person's life.

The life tenant can't bequeath or transfer ownership to the property because a life tenant has only a possessory interest in the property, not an ownership interest.

Once the person dies, the property passes per the terms of the will or the trust.

How much is the property worth?

 

[zddoodah]

I can't answer the questions you raised right now. I'll need to talk to my cousins to get more info.

No real need to do that. My questions were largely rhetorical and to illustrate the significant amount of additional information that would be needed. The situation is far more complex than is appropriate for an internet message board.

I do have an additional question. Can anyone inherit the property from a will written by the life tenant ?

The life tenant's interest in the property expires upon her death, and she has nothing to pass by her will.