Perrine, made to his children and grandchildren shortly before his death. A woman in the US state of Kentucky has won a legal battle over $2.33 million in investment accounts that her late husband had left to his four children. The court also upheld the ruling on $126,000 in gifts that her husband, William E.
The Kentucky Court of Appeals upheld an earlier ruling that Nancy Bobo Perrine was entitled to half the value of the accounts under state law, despite not being named as a beneficiary.
The couple had not discussed their finances or signed a prenuptial or postnuptial agreement, Justia Law reported, according to court records. His four adult children challenged a lower court’s decision recognising Nancy’s right to a share of his personal property. Both later married other people and had children. Both accounts named his children as transfer-on-death beneficiaries, meaning the funds would normally pass directly to them without going through the standard probate process.
William, known as Bill, died on February 6, 2024, without leaving a will. Bill and Nancy first met in Atlanta in 1952 but went their separate ways. After their respective spouses died, they reconnected in 2007 and eventually married in October 2015. At the time of Bill’s death, two investment accounts managed through Schwab were worth a combined $2,331,762.92.
Bill’s children appealed, arguing that the investment accounts passed directly to the named beneficiaries and should not be included in the property covered by her claim. The court also upheld the lower court’s finding that the children had not overcome the legal presumption that the arrangements were intended to deprive Nancy of her rightful share. As a result, Nancy’s entitlement to half the value of the investment accounts, along with a share of the disputed gifts, was upheld.
The dispute also involved $126,000 transferred from the investment account to Bill’s children and grandchildren on January 30, 2024, just a week before his death. Court Rejects Children’s Arguments In October 2025, the Fayette Circuit Court ruled in Nancy’s favour.
