Will Question

My mother-in-law collected art. In the early 1990s the Art was placed in our home. Over the years she added to the collection. On a few occasions my wife had to give her some money to pay for some of what she was buying. In 1997 she wrote a paper listing 70 pcs of art. We must have about 35 of the pcs at the time. Several times she us the art was ours, and requested we do not sell it, and give it to our kids. We are the only ones with children. In 2005 she wrote a will. In 2009 she died. Her assets were supposed to be split equally among her 4 children. There is no mention at all in the will of the art. Now the younger daughter says the art is part of the estate. The estate attorney says he finds it hard to believe that our Mother-in-law gave us the art, and that we just had it for safe-keeping. He wants us to show proof it was a gift.

We have numerous letters from the artists written to my Mother in law at our address. We have some with my Mother-in-law's name and my wife's name and our address. We have a letter in an envelope that says, "FOR YOUR EYES ONLY" addresses to my wife, and it shows some paintings my mother-in-law had money down on, but did not finish buying.

The art was a gift. My sister-in-law thinks it is valuable so she is after it. Why do we have to prove it was a gift? It was not in the will, and the list written before the will is meaningless.