I guess I am ignorant but a gay friend of mine told me he can't guarantee leaving his partner his "worldly goods" since they can't be married. He says his brother could possibly take the things. After thinking about this(?) Couldn't he have it specified in a will that his mate is the one to inherit his things? Or is there some other dumb law I don't hear about? Any advice I can relay to him?
2006-06-10 20:34:41 · 5 answers · asked by busybody12 5 in Society & Culture ➔ Cultures & Groups ➔ Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender
It depends on where you live . Here in the United States the law states that there are class inheritors , first class being husband wife , second class being children brother sister mother farther , third class being anyone else . You can leave your worldly goods to anyone you choose , but the first and second class inheritors have a right to make a claim against the estate and if they challenge the will in court they can get a portion . There is also the issue of Taxes First Class inheritors pay no taxes on an eastate valued up to a certain amount , second class inheritors pay no tax on an estate valued up to 300 thousand dollars , third class inheritors and this is where it gets tricky , if you are a third class inheritor cousin nephew or nice you pay taxes but the amount is extremely lower than a non blood relation . If he has a will and leaves everything to his partner he can loose part of the estate to the relatives and he will have to pay heavy taxes on what they don't get , the taxes could be up to 30 % from the first dollar amount . The way to avoid this is to have a living trust and the entire estate is put into the trust and each one of them is on the trust as a trustee and can put in or take out anthing in the trust anytime , when one or the other dies the trust will pass directly to the suvivor . A will is still necessary in order to secure the wishes of the deceased . They can also adopt each other .
2006-06-11 04:32:22 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 0⤋
Where I am from, gay marriage is allowed but your mate could leave anyone everything he owns. He just has to write a will. If he dies before he has managed to make a will then all his things will go to his next of kin which, from what I can gather from your question, would be his brother. If this happens then there is nothing anyone could do. I hope I have been of some use to you.
2006-06-11 03:14:37 · answer #2 · answered by Potteress 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
actually people, its not all that easy...........will or no will, family can still go to court and argue that they should inherit.......and it can happen........you can have all the legal documentation in the world and your partner could still end up homeless, broke, kicked out of the hospital while visiting his/her partner and even barred from the funeral.......a trust is a much better tool....or actually owning the property jointly with rights to survivorship......the inheriting party's name is already on the property at the time of death....they become or already are the legal owner this way.........its sad that we have to go the extra distance to keep our partners safe, but until more people help us change laws we live in fear of families that could take away everything we've worked for...
2006-06-11 03:13:10 · answer #3 · answered by D~~ 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Anyone can make a will to say anyone gets what every they have.
They don't have to me mairred.
All he has to do is get with an lawer and write up a will that says he gets everything he owns..... it's that easy.
2006-06-10 20:43:20 · answer #4 · answered by CrazyCat 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
First of all, where I come from...Gay marriage is allowed and secondly...In a will you can say sho must recieve your things, NOT just family....Hope it helps!
2006-06-10 20:39:12 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋