I am a paralegal so I can help you a bit. Louisiana law is different than the law in all the other states because it is based on French law, not English Common law. You need to consult an attorney in your state that specializes in wills, trusts and estates to find out the specific laws.
Generally, though, since your grandmother died without a will, her estate would have to be divided under the intestate statutes in your state. Louisiana basically creates a will for her since she did not have one. There is a formula for how her estate should be divided between all her surviving heirs that has to be followed. Your uncle can't just decide where all the money should go and/or keep it all for himself.
That's why it is so important to have a will even if you don't have that much property to distribute. Your grandmother may have assumed her wishes to have the money evenly divided would be carried out, but obviously they weren't. Now everyone has to hire lawyers and fight it out. By the time you all get finished paying legal fees, who knows if there will be any money left to fight over. |