After Wife’s Death, Widower Finds Out They’ve Been Divorced for More than 20 Years – Story of the Day

Stanley’s wife, Clara, died unexpectedly and never left a will. But when he started to arrange her estate, his lawyer discovered they had been divorced for over 20 years for the weirdest reason. Then Clara’s inheritor appeared. Clara and Stanley got married in the late 80s, and they decided to raise their children in West Virginia. But they only had one daughter, Jasmine. Unfortunately, in the 2000s, she got mixed up with the wrong crowd.

When Jasmine turned 18, she left the house and cut them off despite Clara and Stanley’s best efforts. Her boyfriend, Phineas, was a horrible influence on her and filled her head with all kinds of lies about them. It had been over ten years since they saw Jasmine, but they still held hope that she would come back someday. But Clara unexpectedly had a heart attack, and the doctors couldn’t do anything. She died and Stanley was heartbroken.

He didn’t even know if Jasmine would find out about her mother. But he had to get Clara’s affairs in order. She had not left a will or anything because they were still so young. I never expected to lose her so soon, Stanley thought. After the funeral, he met with his lawyer, Nathaniel Caldwell. “Mr. Cohen, my condolences. I hate to meet under these circumstances, but it’s important to arrange everything,” Mr. Caldwell greeted.

“Yes, Mr. Caldwell. I also want to get my affairs ready, too, just in case. You never know what could happen,” Stanley responded. “That’s right. But there’s something I have to tell you. So my secretary arranged all the pertinent documents regarding Mrs. Cohen after your call, and there’s a bit of a problem,” Mr. Caldwell began.

“What’s wrong?” Stanley wondered, confused. “Well…according to the paperwork, you and Mrs. Cohen got divorced in the early 2000s,” the lawyer explained. “What? That’s impossible! We have never even slept apart since we got married. There must be a mistake,” Stanley pointed out. “We are trying to find out what happened. But that’s the situation we have right now. Since you are divorced, her next of kin would inherit her estate,” Mr. Caldwell explained.

“That would be Jasmine, I guess. But I don’t understand how this is possible. Could she get divorced without my consent? And if she did, why did she continue to live with me?” Stanley asked. “Unless she kept a diary, I have no way to answer your questions. But it would not be possible to divorce without your signature. Don’t worry, though. We are looking into this matter thoroughly. For now, I have to contact your daughter,” the lawyer explained.

“We’re estranged. I have not seen or heard from her in many years. I guess she would get Clara’s savings, right?” Stanley pondered.  “She also gets your house, Mr. Cohen. It’s in your wife’s name. Maybe you can reach a deal with her. That’s all for now. I’ll reach you if there’s any new development,” Mr. Cald wall finished. Stanley left the meeting dumbfounded.