Q: Our parents acquired quite a lot of property and wealth during their 30-year-marriage. Our father worked in a business and our mother raised us. Then our father had his head turned by a woman young enough to be his daughter. After two years of bitter divorce proceedings, our mother died before the divorce. She had changed her will, cutting out our father and leaving everything she owned to my sister and me. Since only the house and a small bank account were titled in her name, her estate is minimal; however, she told my sister and me that because she was concerned that my father would end up squandering everything on the "young trollop," should she die before the divorce was completed, my sister and I should continue the case for her to make sure we received what she would have received. In her will, she named me as her executor. Our father is now making a claim against our mother's estate for his rightful share of the house. How do we go about continuing the case, and can we get part of what is titled in our father's name?

A: Although the rules will vary from state to state and although the factual situations may differ, generally speaking, property acquired during a marriage -- regardless of whose name the asset is titled in -- is marital property. As marital property, upon the filing of a matrimonial action -- or at such time as your state says -- your mother's interest in the marital property became "vested" -- that is to say, established as her property in some proportion. Upon proving the extent of her contribution, the court could award her an interest that could conceivably range from 25 percent to 50 percent, again depending on where you live.

As a vested owner, in most jurisdictions, your mother's death did not terminate her property rights. On the other hand, in most states, there is a rule called "elective share," meaning that one spouse can't cut another out of a will.

Divorce, especially with the elderly, can become most complicated, and the answer to the question you pose depends on the law of your state.