A mom has caused outrage for expecting all her children to inherit something from her ex-husband's family, even those from her second marriage.
Reddit user u/Outrageous_Ad3260 explained in a post, which has since been deleted, that after her dad passed away when she was 6 years old, her mom remarried and had three more children.
The poster's grandfather passed away and he left money and a small gift to each of his grandchildren. However, the poster's mom expected the children from her second marriage to receive something from the inheritance as well, despite having no relation to him.
In 2021, the University of Pennsylvania used data collected from the Survey of Consumer Finances to observe the distribution of inheritance across age, wealth, and relation since 2001.
The data showed that the average inheritance received from grandparents was$1,458, and the amount inherited tends to increase with age.
In the Reddit post, the user wrote: "My mom and her husband were not very happy. My half siblings had been expecting something when they heard through mom we got something.
"Mom and her husband confronted my grandmother, who asked why my half siblings would have been left anything, and explained as far as she was aware, none of my dad's family would be including them."
While the poster agrees with the grandmother's opinion, her mom believes that she should side with her half siblings who felt aggrieved at being left out of the will.
"I told my mom she had no right to expect my dad's family would have included my half siblings," the post continues. "She told me of course she had a right. We're all still family and the kids have known them their whole lives."
With nearly 30 years of legal experience, George Kline Preston, of the Kline Preston Law Group, has seen many situations similar to this, when the distribution of an inheritance has caused tension.
Preston said that while it's difficult to appease everyone when it comes to inheritance, it's important to be clear and direct on a will to ensure there's zero questions about it.
"Unfortunately, it is completely normal for distant relatives to feel and be aggrieved, as well as caregivers, when someone passes," Preston told Newsweek.
"You almost cannot avoid a difficult situation when people pass. It is very common with issues like this. However, it's so important that people are clear on both their wills and their life insurance claims.
"Also, it's best to go through an estate attorney directly, don't use internet products or online questionnaires as they aren't going to hold up."
The Reddit post received over 5,500 votes since it was shared, and over 600 comments before being removed.
The top voted comment, which has over 8,500 votes itself, reads: "At the end of the day, your half siblings are not your grandparents' responsibility, and they were only in contact with them because of you and your sister. You should ask your step dad if his parents have included you and your sister on their will."
Another person wrote on the post: "It's not like OP [original poster] and sister are saying they don't love their siblings, or see them as family."
Newsweek reached out to u/Outrageous_Ad3260 for comment via direct message. We could not verify the details of the case.
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