Y.C. Wang was a Taiwanese billionaire who ranked 178th in Forbes' 2008 list of wealthiest people in the world before passing away in the same year. He did not leave a will upon his death, and as a result, his wife is suing several family members who she claims diverted some of Wang's wealth into trusts that she does not have access to.

Wang's wife lives in Taiwan, and that country's law states that Wang's wife is entitled to half of the marital estate. She is suing members of what she calls the "Third Family," a group comprised of Wang's children that he had outside of his marriage, in a Washington D.C. court because she claims the money was moved to a trust there from 2003 to 2008.

Wang's wife claims that as he grew older, the "Third Family" turned Wang against her and then diverted some of his money into trusts in the United States because he lacked a will.

This affects her share of the estate, and though she filed suit in a Washington D.C. court, the judge dismissed her case earlier this week. Citing a lack of evidence to prove where the trust's beneficiaries had citizenship, the judge threw out her suit because the court had no jurisdiction. However, the judge did order that the defendants must turn over citizenship information regarding the beneficiaries to Wang's wife within 14 days. That will allow Wang's wife to retry her lawsuit.

If Wang's wife can prove the trustees are located in the United States, she can claim diversity jurisdiction and potentially earn back Wang's marital estate.

Source: The Blog of Legal Times, "D.C. Judge Dismisses Lawsuit Over Estate of Late Taiwanese Billionaire Y.C. Wang," Zoe Tillman, Jan. 30, 2012