What a mess.
If he had already filed the paperwork, but he just hadn't received his copies, I suspect you have a chance of getting the money for the child -- he had to have signed the paperwork just days before his death -- but it will probably require going to court, which is a waste of his estate's money. Still, I think court is the only avenue available to the family.
Of course, it's possible that New Girlfriend has every intention of investing it for the child and saving it for a college education or whatever. I mean, in the time she dated Cousin, she may've come to care for the child and her intentions may match your own. However, I wouldn't want to count on it; it'll be a long time 'til the child is ready to have that money, and too many things can happen between now and then.
And for those of us not involved in this problem (and we should thank God we're not), I see two life lessons:
- If you've been thinking of making official change in your beneficiaries (or whatever else), do it today. None of us know just how many days are allotted to each of us. Our children are adults now, and we named them co-beneficiaries to EVERYTHING last summer; I feel good knowing it's done.
- Don't put money into the hands of someone who isn't a legal relative (or, in this case, isn't legally related to the child you'd want to have the money). A number of people on this board are fairly strongly against marriage, but marriage is about legal protection as much as romantic love.