Woman’s Claim on Estate Rejected
SANTA ANA — An Orange County Superior Court judge ruled Friday that Hillary Jade Pedersen is not entitled to share in the multimillion-dollar estate of the late Leisure World founder Ross Cortese, who fathered the woman out of wedlock 32 years ago.
Pedersen has been arguing for the last year in Probate Court that she was an omitted heir who should have been included in Cortese’s 1987 will. Cortese, who died in 1991, stipulated that his inheritance go only to his first and second wives, Alona and Eloise Cortese, and daughter Heidi.
Cortese’s estate is valued at $300 million to $500 million, according to Pedersen’s attorney.
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