Estates

At death, your will goes through probate. Probate simply means the process by which your last will is determined to be your final dispositive statement and which confirms the appointment of the person or institution you have named to administer your estate. The term "probate" is also used in the larger sense of probating your estate. In this sense, probate means the process by which assets are gathered, applied to pay debts, taxes and expenses of administration, and distributed to those designated as beneficiaries in the will.

A person who owns a life estate cannot leave it to heirs. The life estate expires when the life tenant dies.

In another sense a person can inherit a life estate. For example, suppose William is married to his second wife, Sarah. William and Sarah live in the home that William shared with his first wife who died many years ago. It was the family home where he grew up and where he raised his own children. In his will William can leave his home to his children but reserve a life estate for Sarah so that she can continue to live in their home for the duration of her life. When William dies Sarah will inherit a life estate. When Sarah dies William's children will own the property free of her life estate.

es. The debts of the decedent must be paid before any property can be distributed. The creditor can file a claim against the estate. The estate must be probated if it contains real property in order for title to pass to the heirs legally.

es. The debts of the decedent must be paid before any property can be distributed. The creditor can file a claim against the estate. The estate must be probated if it contains real property in order for title to pass to the heirs legally.

es. The debts of the decedent must be paid before any property can be distributed. The creditor can file a claim against the estate. The estate must be probated if it contains real property in order for title to pass to the heirs legally.

es. The debts of the decedent must be paid before any property can be distributed. The creditor can file a claim against the estate. The estate must be probated if it contains real property in order for title to pass to the heirs legally.

You must review the instrument that created the trust to determine how a successor trustee must be appointed.

A trust will never fail just because of a lack of a trustee. If the instrument itself does not provide for a determination of a successor trustee, the parties in interest, whether they are present or future beneficiaries or even legitimate creditors of the trust, may apply to the appropriate court for the appointment of such a trustee. The parties may request the appointment of some particular person or entity. The court will generally appoint the requested person but it is not bound by such a request if the suggested person is somehow inappropriate for appointment.

For an estate to be probated the last will and testament must be recorded at court. If the will was filed then there should be a record of it in the probate files of the Clerk of The Court. If the will was not filed the only other option would be to try to determine who prepared it (attorney, etc) to see if they may have a copy of it in their files, or try to determine if the deceased had a safety deposit box.

It depends on what sense of "legal" you are referring to. An unsigned document in and of itself is not generally binding or enforceable. An letter used as evidence of some particular fact could be verified by a handwriting expert. It depends on what you mean by legal and the circumstances. You need to provide more details.

Probably, given the cited circumstances. Some life estates are "determinable" meaning it automatically ends upon the occurrence of a specific event, other than the death of the life tenant. There are also those which are "condition subsequent", meaning the land is granted for a specific purpose, such as farming. A life estate can also be given to the life tenant for the life of some other person (estate pur autre vie). One of the constants of a life estate is, the tenant(s) cannot squander the property and must pay all expenses, taxes, utilities an so forth, unless there is a directive that states otherwise. The biggest factor obviously would be, if the person is a named life tenant and therefore has occupancy rights.

"On behalf of the fire service family, we present this flag as a token of your husband's (or wife's) dedication to serve and protect his community.">>>>take half step back and salute the family member receiving the flag.

It varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, but normally (a) you need a court order, and (b) you need to establish a risk that the personal representatives will dissipate the assets without paying what is owed to you.

Yes. The surviving spouse will inherit all or part of the estate under the state laws of intestacy. A legal separation has no effect on inheritance of the surviving spouse. Even if the decedent left a will naming a different beneficiary, the surviving spouse has a right of election. You can check the laws of intestacy in your state at the related question link provided below.

If you are the surviving spouse you should consult an attorney who can review your situation and explain your rights and options under your state law.

In the event that there is no surviving spouse, the death benefit would go to the contingent beneficiary. The contingent beneficiary is best described as "the runner up". This person should have been listed when the application for insurance was submitted. If for any reason this is not the case, the death benefit would then be subject to probate. You must also remember that people are human and do make mistakes and may have not listed your beneficiaries correctly. If that is the case the contingency beneficiary is the person named in you policy (which is the binding contract that the insurance company must legally be bound to). To be sure of what is true for your exact case get a free analysis from a team of professionals, just so there is no surprises. E-mail (freeinsuranceanalysis@yahoo.com).

It will depend on the laws in the jurisdiction in question. If the sibling was born after the will was made, it may be a rule of law to add them.

Yes, the administrator of an estate may purchase a home from the estate; however, that type of transaction is inherently a conflict of interest and would have to be approved by all beneficiaries having an interest in the property or by the probate court. Obviously a person buying a house wants to pay as little as possible to buy a house; but, the administrator has a fiduciary duty to receive as much as possible when selling the house. Usually, the administrator gets the consent of all beneficiaries to the transaction. They agree in advance that the sale price is satisfactory and that they have no objection to the administrator buying the house at that price. Sometimes administrators are required to apply to the probate court for the authority to sell the house and for permission to buy it. The administrator would have to prove to the court that the transaction is fair and above board. The beneficiaries would have an opportunity to raise objections if they object to the purchase price. If the administrator has no ownership interest in the property, he cannot force the beneficiaries to sell the house to him/her.

The first step is to determine ownership under the laws of the state where the property is located. Ownership rights are determined by the way the title to the property is titled. If the property is held as Joint Tenancy or Joint Tenants With Rights To Survivorship (JTWRS) the propert passes directly to the other owner(s) and is not subject to probate action; if it is held as Tenants-In-Common the share of the property belonging to the deceased is determined by and subject to probate procedure.

No. That would be a forgery unless they have a properly executed Power of Attorney.

Ownership of real estate is evidenced and accomplished by a deed. The person who transfers the property is called the grantor and the person who receives it is the grantee. In any deed, the grantee is the new owner. The owner of real estate is said to hold title to it.

Yes, joint tenancy is available in West Virginia. If you own property jointly with someone else, and this ownership includes the “right of survivorship,” then the surviving owner automatically owns the property when the other owner dies. The deed should state " . . . to Harry and Sally as joint tenants with the right of survivorship".

if two people jointly own property and one of these people offers to sale or buy the property from the other how long is that offer good for?

the surviving spouse receives an equal portion as each child.

Generally in a court of original jurisdiction, such as a trial level court. The US Supreme Court has original jurisdiction only in cases involving ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls and cases in which a state shall be a party. Article 3, Section 2 of the US Constitution.

The decedent's property is distributed according to the provisions in the will, or according to the state laws of intestacy to the heirs at law, after the debts of the decedent and any taxes and costs of probate are paid.

No, the only person who can change a will is the person who wrote it, or perhaps a court that is convinced there is some obvious mistake that needs to be "changed" to accurately reflect the testator's intent.

Distribution will be according to the California intestacy laws. Typically the spouse and children will be the beneficiaries. Siblings and parents would be next in line.