I remember hearing stories about "the money" ever since i was a kid. The money that was waiting for my dad, the money that he would eventually receive, and later on, the money that made enemies out of him and his sister. It all started in the early early 30's when my great great uncle left Russia to find a better life in America. He married an older widow who eventually died and left him a fortune. He then used the money to open hotels and restaurants in New Jersey and became a millionaire.
Fast forward to 1989, the year we learn that the uncle has a middle-aged grand-daughter who also lives in Russia. He wanted her to come live with him, but didn't want her to go through the process alone. So he remembered about his grand-niece, my father's sister, and invited her to keep his grand-daughter company. She agreed, went to New Jersey, and convinced him to include her parents and their children in his will. She told him that since she is the only one of those people living outside of Russia, the best way to make sure everyone gets an equal share would be to leave it all to her and let her divide it equally when the time comes.
The uncle died in '94, leaving us $250,000. At the time, everyone knew that the plan was to divide it all between 5 people, and everyone trusted eachother - there was no need for the uncle to specifially state how the money is to be divided in his will. But everything changed when he died. Sharing the fortune with her two brothers and her parents was the last thing my aunt wanted to do. She did send $20,000 to her parents in Russia, but it was unclear what happened to the other $80,000 that was ment for them, or the $100,000 for my dad and his brother, who never received a cent.
In 96, my father finally brought us to Canada, where his sister also moved after she was refused citizenship in USA. Three years later, my grandfather died in Russia, and my grandmother came to live with my aunt here. In 2000, probably thanks to my grandmother, my aunt finally decided to talk. She told my dad that she only received $60,000 of the $250,000 and that she would give him $20,000 of it. Supposedly, $190,000 went to lawyers who had to battle the uncle's step-son for the money. But my dad was happy to get at least something, and patch up his relationship with his sister. But then, when it seemed like the story would have a happy ending after all, my uncle, who owed a large amount of money to my aunt, went bankrupt in Russia. She realised that she will never see a cent from him, and giving $20,000 to my dad would mean that she would lose twice. So the found a way out and told my dad that he would receive his money when her brother pays back. She bought a house, and supposedly can't spare $20,000. But my dad's brother is broke, and he will never pay back.
So what happens now? It looks like it's up to me. My dad has had to deal with this for the past 7 years and he is tired - he no longer wants to fight. At the very least, we're talking about $20,000 here. That is of course, if the aunt was telling the truth, and $190,000 was indeed given to lawyers. But knowing my aunt, i doubt that is true. My grandmother also told my dad that in the last minute, the uncle also decided to leave us 1/5th of his estate. Apart from that, we have no knowledge of whether that really happened or not, but if it did, we're talking about far more than $50,000 here. So i can do two things: sit on my ass and wish that my great great uncle was more specific while writing his will, or try to do something about it. I want to fight: whether it's $20,000 or ten times more, i want to take it from my aunt because it is rightfully ours and because of what she did to him. But what can i do? There is no paperwork that states that anything belongs to my dad. Yes, there are people who know about it, mainly my father's brother and his mother, but his brother is hiding from his creditors somewhere in Russia, and his mother is too old to go against her daughter's will. Is there anything i can do?
Fast forward to 1989, the year we learn that the uncle has a middle-aged grand-daughter who also lives in Russia. He wanted her to come live with him, but didn't want her to go through the process alone. So he remembered about his grand-niece, my father's sister, and invited her to keep his grand-daughter company. She agreed, went to New Jersey, and convinced him to include her parents and their children in his will. She told him that since she is the only one of those people living outside of Russia, the best way to make sure everyone gets an equal share would be to leave it all to her and let her divide it equally when the time comes.
The uncle died in '94, leaving us $250,000. At the time, everyone knew that the plan was to divide it all between 5 people, and everyone trusted eachother - there was no need for the uncle to specifially state how the money is to be divided in his will. But everything changed when he died. Sharing the fortune with her two brothers and her parents was the last thing my aunt wanted to do. She did send $20,000 to her parents in Russia, but it was unclear what happened to the other $80,000 that was ment for them, or the $100,000 for my dad and his brother, who never received a cent.
In 96, my father finally brought us to Canada, where his sister also moved after she was refused citizenship in USA. Three years later, my grandfather died in Russia, and my grandmother came to live with my aunt here. In 2000, probably thanks to my grandmother, my aunt finally decided to talk. She told my dad that she only received $60,000 of the $250,000 and that she would give him $20,000 of it. Supposedly, $190,000 went to lawyers who had to battle the uncle's step-son for the money. But my dad was happy to get at least something, and patch up his relationship with his sister. But then, when it seemed like the story would have a happy ending after all, my uncle, who owed a large amount of money to my aunt, went bankrupt in Russia. She realised that she will never see a cent from him, and giving $20,000 to my dad would mean that she would lose twice. So the found a way out and told my dad that he would receive his money when her brother pays back. She bought a house, and supposedly can't spare $20,000. But my dad's brother is broke, and he will never pay back.
So what happens now? It looks like it's up to me. My dad has had to deal with this for the past 7 years and he is tired - he no longer wants to fight. At the very least, we're talking about $20,000 here. That is of course, if the aunt was telling the truth, and $190,000 was indeed given to lawyers. But knowing my aunt, i doubt that is true. My grandmother also told my dad that in the last minute, the uncle also decided to leave us 1/5th of his estate. Apart from that, we have no knowledge of whether that really happened or not, but if it did, we're talking about far more than $50,000 here. So i can do two things: sit on my ass and wish that my great great uncle was more specific while writing his will, or try to do something about it. I want to fight: whether it's $20,000 or ten times more, i want to take it from my aunt because it is rightfully ours and because of what she did to him. But what can i do? There is no paperwork that states that anything belongs to my dad. Yes, there are people who know about it, mainly my father's brother and his mother, but his brother is hiding from his creditors somewhere in Russia, and his mother is too old to go against her daughter's will. Is there anything i can do?