MILWAUKEE—A woman who says she was the common-law wife of a descendant of one of Milwaukee’s most prominent brewing families has filed a claim against his $20 million estate.
Cindy Manning has asked that the disposition of the estate of Frederick W. Uihlein Jr. be transferred to Colorado, where the two shared a home for 13 years.
Uihlein was the great-grandson of Alfred Uihlein, who led the Jos. Schlitz Brewing Co. with his brothers.
Lawyers who represent the trust Uihlein established in 1974 contend there was no legal marriage and they have attempted to evict Manning from a home in Fruita, Colo., where the pair lived, according to court records.
Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Michael Dwyer ruled Friday that a hearing on the woman’s claims would be held at a later date.
Manning said in a filing with the court that she met Uihlein in Colorado in 1993, and they began living together in Steamboat Springs, continuing to do so until shortly before he died in February.
“During that time, we lived and, when the occasion arose, held ourselves out as husband and wife,” Manning says in a document she filed with the probate court in Milwaukee. “I understand that under Colorado law we became common-law husband and wife.”
She has asked Dwyer to transfer the disposition of Uihlein’s estate to Mesa County, Colo., where he had long been a resident.
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Information from: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel,
