Estates

Challenging a will is a court process and it will be in your best interest to find an estate planning attorney. That being said you need good cause to successfully challenge a will. This can be shown by one of many different ways including: * The will maker was not mentally competent at the time he drafted or signed the will * The will maker was pressured by someone to agree to those terms * The will maker has another will or trust which trumps this one * The will was not properly witnessed or signed * The will maker was mistaken or induced by fraud to sign

The residuary estate is usually addressed in the residuary clause in the will. If the residuary estate is not addressed in the will then the residuary passes to the next-of-kin as intestate property according to the laws of intestacy. Distribution of an estate is governed by statute and not by any verbal agreements. A beneficiary can waive their rights to distribution but it must be done in writing and filed with the estate.

In order for the title to the property to pass to the heirs legally, at least one parent's estate (the last to die) must be probated. If there was no will then a member of the family must petition the court to be appointed the administrator. You should consult with an attorney who specializes in probate who can review the situation, determine how your parent's held title to their property and advise you on what legal proceedings must be undertaken.

The gift to the beneficiary will become part of the beneficiary's estate.

Generally, the interest of the deceased heir will pass to their own heirs according to the provisions in their will or to their heirs-at-law under the state laws of intestacy. Also, their estate will need to be probated. The attorney who is handling the original estate can explain what needs to be done in order to clear the title to the property.

If there is no will then there is no executor. Some qualified person would need to petition the probate court to be appointed the Administrator of the estate. An Administrator is appointed when there is no will.

In most US states, a surviving spouse can elect against the decedent spouse's will, meaning that the suriving spouse has the right to receive a specified portion of the decedent spouse's estate. That portion may depend on how long they've been married and whether the decedent spouse has any children, inter alia.

First: A person is not an executor until they have been appointed by a court. Once appointed, the executor is under the jurisdiction of the court and can be reported and removed for a failure to carry out their duties quickly, efficiently and according to the law. You should petition the court to remove and replace the executor.

According to the will,Joseph will remain the custodian of the estate.

The mortgage is a debt against the estate which must be satisfied before the heir receives anything. If there is enough cash in the estate, the mortgage can be paid off and the heir will get the house. If not, the house will need to be sold, and the proceeds used to pay off the mortgage. If there are not enough assets in the estate to pay off the mortgage, there won't be anything left for the heir. It is the responsibility of the executor of the estate to see to all these transactions and to deliver the proceeds--what's left after settling the debts--to the heir.

The assets of an estate are held by the trustees of the estate. After all debts and testamentary dispositions have been satisfied the residue may be distributed

Generally, no. In fact, a properly drafted trust protects the assets of the trustor from their spouse. That type of arrangement is often used when a person has valuable assets, children from a first marriage and a new spouse. A trust removes the assets from their individual estate thereby circumventing inheritance laws.

No, but bear in mind that the costs will come out of the parents' estate first.

So if a single parent died with assets worth $12,000US, the medical bills will be paid after the necessary amount of assets have been liquidated. The child will then inherit the rest. If the medical bills are higher than the deceased's estate, then all of it will be taken, but the rest of the debt will be written off.

Note also that many countries have laws that consider it an attempt at fraud, for a terminally ill patient to sign all their assets over to someone else before death, to avoid the patient's debts being paid out of their estate, post-mortem.

No. Your grandmother owns a life estate in the premises. That means she has the right to the use and possession of the property for the duration of her natural life. Your father cannot sell or mortgage the property without her consent. Your grandmother could agree to release her interest in writing but she could ask for a cash settlement for her interest in the property in return for her signed release of the life estate. She should seek legal advice from an attorney who could help her to protect her interests.

No. You cannot maintain any control over the assets in a irrevocable trust. Doing so will cause the trust to fail and leave you exposed to creditors and taxes.

The role of the trustee after the death of the trustor must be set forth in the provisions of the trust document. Generally, the provisions provide that the remaining trust assets be distributed to the beneficiaries and the trust terminated. On the other hand, trustors who desire to maintain control even after death may provide for an ongoing trust. In any case you must review the terms of the particular trust for your answer. If the trust has no provisions to address that issue then a judge will need to decide.

Certainly. You will have to consult an attorney.

If you received a letter from a barrister in Ireland named Beldon Amador, it is a scam and do not respond.

It depends on the laws of the specific jurisdiction. In some jurisdictions, estranged children may be able to contest the will and make a claim for inheritance if they were excluded, while in others they may not have a legal right to inherit. It is advisable to consult with a lawyer who specializes in estate or inheritance law for specific guidance.

Your brother's estate would be distributed according to the laws of intestacy in his state. Generally, his parents would be his next of kin. If his parents are not living then his siblings would be next in line. You can check the laws in his state at the related question link provided below.

Im pretty sure the answer is,

It would depend on who they are jointly owned with. If a spouse, no. Anyone else, yes but only half.

That is an inexcusable breach of confidentiality. The breach should be reported to the testator so she/he may have the option to amend the will and name a new executor. In fact, the testator should name a new executor since that one has proven by their actions they are not trustworthy.

The beneficiaries should know that a will can be changed by the testator at any time prior to their death and doesn't become effective until the testator has died and the will has been submitted for probate and allowed. If the will has not been changed at the time of death to name a new executor, objections should be made to the appointment of that executor and someone else should petition to be appointed. The evidence that the named executor breached the confidentiality of the testator by revealing the contents of the will should be brought forth at that time as evidence that they cannot be trusted.

Reinstatement of a Living Trust occurs when the trust has been previously revoked or otherwise set aside or suspended by a probate court. Reinstatement means the trust is just that, reinstated, or put back into effect. This can be done by the creator of the trust or by a trustee under certaincircumstances or even by a judge.

Their estate is held by the court and people are invited to make their case for a part of that estate.

In most places, adopted children have the same legal rights to inheritance as biological children. This means they are entitled to inherit from their adoptive parents' estates just like biological children are. Adoption is a legally recognized process that grants the adopted child the same legal status and rights as a biological child in the eyes of the law.