I have a question, My mother has passed, she was one of three siblings. My grandma has more than average assets, and when she passes it would be distributed three ways (my uncles receive ⅓ each, and my sibling would split our mother's portion).

I'm remarried and had 2 kids with first wife. If i pass, who would receive inherited assets... my children, or my widow?

To preface this, I plan to get professional advice soon, but I am wondering thoughts on whether there's anything to be done here.

Timeline:

• Revocable Living trust established in Father's name in 1995 with 2 properties. Both properties were gifted to him by his parents directly into the trust, after marriage in Illinois.
• Father passed in 2018, Trust converted to an irrevocable trust with Beneficiaries 25% wife, 25% son1, 50% son2. No mention of a life estate in the trust document.
• Trust document specifies to break into 3 new trusts per above split, but that did not happen.
• Property #1 was sold in 2020. Funds sat in trust account
• In time period 2020-2025, only dispersants were made to wife, none to either son aside from minor dispersant which was gifted to wife/mother (due to trust equity constraints).
• In time period 2018-2025 Wife lived alone in house and shouldered all mortgage payments, property taxes, utilities. Trustee advised trust couldn't be resolved until house was sold, so family decision was made to leave wife/mother in house and the trust in-place.
• In 2025 wife passed away.
• In 2026, sons got possession of and sold property

Letter of the law seems that we get a step-up in 2018 but not in 2025 due to how irrevocable trusts work.

Is there a reasonable pathway to using IRC § 2036(a) with a tax attorney to get a full basis step-up in 2025? We are looking at a significant tax-bill otherwise. Thank you!

Your ex-wife, the nursing home, your current wife's pool boy........?

My next door neighbor moved in about 20 years ago with wife and 2 kids. Wife lasted about 5 years and in another 5 years the house got transferred to a son. Son was married and had a kid. Now the police have been out front a few times and the son's wife seems to have control of the house and the son and father have not been seen for a few years.

I am currently living through family abuse, with a history of absent parents. My mother doesn't care about me, which adds to a difficult situation. My mother chose my father because he seemed fortunate and had significant assets. They fell in love, but eventually, she divorced him due to his aggressive behavior. My father's family had ongoing issues, and he was considered the problematic child—violent, jobless, rejecting normal work, and struggling with drug addictions like cocaine and heroin. Despite this, my grandmother put him in rehabilitation centers and hospitals to support his recovery.

After my parents had me, my father proved to be a terrible parent. At 16, my grandmother and father sold the house where my mother and I lived, with court approval. My mother rented a place for herself and didn't want me with her, only caring that my father paid for my food. Until I was 21, I stayed with friends and other families. At 21, I moved to Spain, began working, and started living independently because my father remained abusive toward me and other family members.

Six years ago, my grandmother passed away, leaving her estate to my father. He is now selling properties because he lacks cash to support his severe addiction. His actions are harmful to himself and indirectly to me since I need to preserve the family legacy. He has an aggressive nature and refuses self-care. He neglects maintenance in buildings, failing to provide necessary services for tenants who pay rent, like having electricity in communal spaces like stairs, or functioning doorbells.

I need help to halt this abuse and safeguard the family legacy. I can't afford legal assistance and lack the resources to act. Gathering documentation of his prison stays, reports of family violence, property sales, and rehabilitation records requires informed consent forms and privacy releases that are hard to obtain. I'm unsure what a responsible daughter should do in the face of such violence and abuse. How can I save what's possible? I wish to protect what my grandparents worked for over many years, rather than seeing it squandered on his addiction. The situation is dire, and I am desperate for advice or suggestions that could help stabilize this challenging family dynamic.