Dad spends his 16-year-old son's inheritance from his late mother on his 4-year-old daughter's medical treatment, grandparents stop helping dad: 'They said he had some nerve stealing their daughter's money and spending it on his child'

Author image for Emmy Pratt
Emmy Pratt • Writer and Editor
Oct 18, 2024 8:00 PM EDT

It disgusts me how many people get away with stealing money from children. They are the most vulnerable group of people, and there are virtually no consequences for stepping all over them and taking the little they have. If parents decide to broadcast their children's lives on their YouTube channel, sharing private information and making them perform every day for monetary gain, the kids could go through their entire lives without seeing a cent of that money. There are kids who make more money than their parents working in entertainment, and aside from the pittance from their Coogan accounts, their parents can do whatever they want with the rest. 

But what about money that's acquired through means other than labor? Surely, it shouldn't be legal for an adult to steal from their child's college fund or inheritance, but it happens, and it happened to this young man who took to Reddit for help. 

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  • 01
    Cheezburger Image 10417249792
    via Christopher Campbell

    This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 02
    AITA for being the reason my grandparents refuse to help my dad anymore and laughing when he and his wife complained about it?
    via u/PlentyBluejay273
  • 03
    My mom died when I (16m) was 7. She left me an inheritance that my dad was put in charge of. The money was supposed to be for my future and nobody was supposed to touch it unless I really needed it and it was pretty specific. I read through it 5 months ago when went down. My dad got married again when I was 10 and he has an 8 year old stepdaughter and now a 4 year old daughter with his wife "Louise".
    via u/PlentyBluejay273
  • 04
    My half sister was diagnosed with a rare condition when she was 2. It was always clear something was wrong but they had a really hard time figuring out what it was. Doctors would say she'd be fine when she was older. This condition isn't life threatening, like she won't die from it, but it could potentially leave her permanently disabled in a bad way. A few months ago they found out about this hard to get into treatment for it.
    via u/PlentyBluejay273
  • 05
    But it was expensive. There was/is ways to get help paying for it but that takes longer. So my dad decided he would use the inheritance mom left me to pay for it. He tried asking me but he was going to do it anyway and when I said no he told me as much. Then he shamed me for saying no, for putting college before the health of my half sister. Louise was in the room with us but she wasn't talking before I said no. She asked me how I could look at my half sister at the life she will have if we don'
    via u/PlentyBluejay273
  • 06
    the money. After I read her will (grandparents had a copy) I brought up the fact it was only for my needs it could be spent before. He told me mom was dead and he hoped she'd understand. I told him I never would. He told me I'd understand when I'm older. I told him I hated him and I told Louise she better never speak to me again because I found it disgusting she'd encourage stealing from me and taking my mom's money.
    via u/PlentyBluejay273
  • 07
    I told my grandparents what dad did. They're my mom's parents but had stayed friendly with dad and there were times they would help him. They shared stuff with him all the time and grandpa would look at dad's car for free if anything was wrong. That all stopped when I told them. Dad couldn't figure out why until he confronted them about it last week. They told him he had some nerve stealing from me, taking their daughter's
    via u/PlentyBluejay273
  • 08
    money and spending it on his child. My dad was mad they didn't understand and support his decision. He confronted me about it and complained about what I did. I laughed and told him I had warned him I would never forgive him for it. He asked how I got to be so heartless and selfish. I told him I would never forget what he did. AITA?
    via u/PlentyBluejay273
  • 09
    Comfortable-Sea-2454 ΝΤΑ I told my grandparents what dad did. They're my mom's parents but had stayed friendly with dad and there were times they would help him. They shared stuff with him all the time and grandpa would look at dad's car for free if anything was wrong. That all stopped when I told them. Dad couldn't figure out why until he confronted them about it last week. They told him he had some nerve stealing from me, taking their daughter's money and spending it on his child. My dad was m
    via u/Comfortable-Sea-2454
  • 10
    Dizzy_Army_936 I absolutely love this reply so much, and if I had money on reddit I'd give it a reward or whatever it is that you're able to do on reddit (I'm relatively new) I STRONGLY SUGGEST listening to this advice and going to live with them, you could ask your maternal grandparents if they would be willing to help you go to court with it so that they could get legal custody of you, you're old enough now that majority of the judges would take you seriously if you said you didn't want to liv
    via u/Dizzy_Army_936
  • 11
    Dewhickey76 Given the will and the way OP's money was STOLEN maybe his GPs can help him file a suit in small claims court once they get custody of OP. There ARE ways that OP's dad could have gotten the money, charities, loans, 2nd mortgage, HELOCs, and the dad CHOSE to steal from his son instead.
    via u/Dewhickey76
  • 12
    I was attacked by a dog when I was 4 and ended up with over 200 stitches in my face, so my parents sued. I was awarded $10,000 that was originally invested in stocks, and grew to about $19,000 by the time I was 11. That was the year my parents ended up selling the stocks and replacing our roof. I was supposed to be paid back when they sold the home. News flash: I wasn't. I really wish someone had been there to help me with holding them accountable in some way.
    via u/Dewhickey76
  • 13
    coralcoast21 This isn't small claims territory unless it's within the monetary limits of the jurisdiction. A consultation with a probate or even a family law attorney is a good place for OP to start.
    via u/coralcoast21
  • 14
    Domdaisy This is estate litigation, NOT family law. Family law consists of marriages (cohabitation agreements, pre nups, etc), divorces, custody, and adoption. NOT estate matters. Drives me crazy to see people constantly suggesting family law lawyers for matters that have nothing to do with family law.
    via u/Domdaisy
  • 15
    OP, your father is the trustee of the trust created for you by your mother's will. He will be held accountable for misuse of the funds. But you will need an estate and trusts litigation lawyer to help you. They will demand he pass the accounts through court (meaning he will have to show a judge how he managed the funds and what he has spent it on). If he spent the money on his own child, he will be removed as trustee, any remaining funds will be removed from his control, and there will likely be
    via u/Domdaisy
  • 16
    But get a consult ASAP. If you are still a minor, ask your grandparents to help. Depending on where you live, there may be government funded legal representation for minors who are beneficiaries of estates. Do NOT let him get away with this. If he hasn't spent all the money there is chance to save the rest. If he has, he will still have a court order that lingers he won't be able to get a mortgage or sell his house without paying it.
    via u/Domdaisy
  • 17
    Ambitious_Estimate41 Cant Op sue his dad? The will specifically said the money is to used on op and his dad stole from him
    via u/Ambitious_Estimate41
  • 18
    InstructionExpert880 Depends on the Country but more than likely yes. The father will have to repay any funds he took.
    via u/InstructionExpert880
  • 19
    Nester1953 That was your money, not your dad's money. It might have been stolen from you in a good cause, but it was stolen from you, and that's illegal. Please have your grandparents find you a lawyer. Your dad is going to have to pay you back.what he took from you. You don't get to steal from your kid. Talk with a lawyer. Get your money back. Your step-sister has already benefitted from it, now it's time for your dad to find a way to repay you. Every cent.
    via u/Nester1953
  • 20
    rpsls If this is the US, don't get your hopes up with a lawyer. I'm not a lawyer (but have dealt with a parent's estate), but my understanding is that parents have a huge amount of legal leeway to handle their kids money how they see fit until they're 18, up to and including taking it all. And a will's legal force essentially ends with probate, and unless the money was in a legal trust, it was probably the Dad's legal decision how to spend it. TL;DR: Mom should have set up a legal trust. Without
    via u/rpsls
  • 21
    phallusaluve Based on OP's explanation, it sounds like it could be a trust. They said they "read it." It could just be written instructions mom left, but here's hoping it's a trust.
    via u/phallusaluve
  • 22
    Aggravating-Thanks80 Your dads feelings and needs are not a lawful reason to ignore a will. He's broken the law, and while it may end up more expensive than the inheritance in question to pursue it, it's an avenue you can take. At the VERY LEAST, your father should be made VERY AWARE that speaking to your grandparents is the KINDEST thing you could have done for him, because the legal options (which are likely very open to you still) would have been FAR worse. He has no right to speak for the de
    via u/Aggravating-Thanks80

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inheritance money problems reddit story half sister dad grandparents reddit thread Reddit mom money Parenting Fail son Parenting FAILS entitled parents bad parents
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