NSW Is It Possible to Obtain Inheritance after 50 Years?

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4 October 2015
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Hello.
My question is: can we recover an inheritance after more than 50 years? My husband has just discovered that his father had never had his share of inheritance (land and houses) because he married an Aboriginal woman. The family did not accept the marriage and my father-in-law was never able to obtain a share of the inheritance from his parents (but his brothers and sisters were sharing the inheritance when their parents died) .
 

Therese

Well-Known Member
11 October 2015
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Hi Catherine,

My understanding is that if someone is a beneficiary under a Will there part of the estate is held on trust and distributed to them by the executor. However if the executor did not give your father-in-law's inheritance to him I am not sure what can happen.

I would suspect that the executor either gave it to the other brothers and sisters unless it is still being held.

Perhaps it would be a good idea to get in contact with a legal aid service or a solicitor to see if after 50 years you are still entitled to inheritance that has not been received.

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