Estates

It should be held in the registry of the court. If it remains there for a certain period of time (could be seven years), it escheats to the state.

If you mean the federal estate tax, the tax on $150,000 is $38,800. However, if the decedent was a citizen or resident of the U.S., the decedent has a credit of $780,800, which is the tax on the first $2,000,000 in assets. (This applies through the remainder of 2008.) As such, there would be no out of pocket tax, because the credit is greater than the tax. (The credit is not refundable, so the government doesn't pay you any of it!) Remember that assets passing to a surviving spouse who is a U.S. citizen are not taxed. Some states impose estate taxes, as well.

Per stirpes is Latin for 'by branch.' It is used in wills to indicate that testimentary gifts are to be divided by family branch, not number of individuals. It is usually done where one of the first listed beneficiaries has died and their share is to be divided between their descendants.

The Administrator of an estate is a legal term referring to a person appointed by a court to administer the estate of a deceased person who left no will. Where a person dies intestate, i.e., without a will, the court may appoint a person to settle their debts, pay any necessary taxes and funeral expenses, and distribute the remainder according to the procedure set down at law. Such a person is known as the administrator of the estate and will enjoy similar powers to those of an executor under a will. A female administrator is referred to as an administratrix.

A will must be presented to probate court for allowance. By that process the court determines that the will is valid. The only person who can change a bequest is a judge. That rarely happens and only for a very good reason. The executor of the estate must follow the provisions in the will to the letter. If for some reason the provisions cannot be carried out the executor must ask the judge for guidance.

Your trust is assumed to be valid in the state where the trust document was drafted but it may not be valid in another state. Before you transfer any property in your new state to the trust you should have the trust reviewed by an attorney who specializes in estate planning and trust law in the state where you plan to move. For example, I have seen numerous trust documents in Massachusetts that were intended to hold title to real estate and that failed under Massachusetts law. Specifically, they each named the trustor, trustee and beneficiary to be the same person. In Massachusetts, no trust would be created in that situation thus the trust would fail. Title to the property remains in the grantor. Due to the number of these trusts I have seen, most showing out of state notaries, I assume them to be valid in some jurisdictions. In legal matters you should always seek the advice of an attorney who specializes in the particular area of law that governs your issue.

Notice of litigation threshold means that someone has legal proceedings about to be brought upon them and that the notice is to make them aware of those proceedings beforehand.

Expenses of administration. Attorney fees, storage costs, court costs, mileage, executor or administrator's fees, costs of sale of property, etc.

If you're serving as executrix of the estate, and the will doesn't specifically state that the decedent waives bonding of the executrix, you need to be bonded. Yes, I know you're the widow...the state cares not. Now check this out: if the heirs all gather together and state they trust the executrix, which would be you, the bond can generally be waived. You may still need a "nominal bond" to assure the state they'll receive the taxes and fees owed, but the nominal bond is not expensive.

I think you mean "creditors," those who are owed money. Debtors are the ones who owe the money. In Texas, the proceeds from life insurance policies are exempt if a dependent is named as the beneficiary. Otherwise, the funds are not exempt. Of course, the creditor must know about the policy to collect from it.

Article 1, section 7 of US Constitution states that bill for raising revenue are initiated by the House of Representatives

A MIS report is a management information system report and an Excel spreadsheet is a way of presenting such a report. But this question is unanswerable as written. Which company's HR department are they asking about?

Yes. That is one of the duties of the executor. The debts must be paid out of the assets of the estate before legacies are paid to the beneficiaries.

heiress

If the will provides that the estate shall be held in trust for a daughter that is called a testamentary trust. By law, the debts of the decedent will be paid first out of the assets of the estate. After the debts have been paid any remaining assets will then be transferred to the trust for the benefit of the daughter.

The three adult children. In states that recognize common law marriage, the female companion may attempt to prove that a marriage existed, but there typically is a short statute of limitations on that.

A person with assets sometimes decides to set aside some of those assets in a trust that will pay over the profits, or assets for the use and benefit of another person. A trustee is appointed to act in regards to the trust property. Generally, the power to reinvest the trust property is included in the powers of the trustee. A beneficiary would not be required to sign away rights as a beneficiary so the trust funds could be reinvested.

The beneficiary is someone the donor cares about. The trust instrument, written by the donor, directs what the trustee may do with the trust property and how the payments must be made to the beneficiary. The trustee MUST follow the provisions of the trust unless the trust instrument allows her/him to use discretion.

To your question: It raises suspicion that the trustee has asked that you "sign away your rights in the trust".

You should seek the advice of an attorney who could review the trust and the actions of the trustee and advise you on how you should proceed in order to protect your interests as a beneficiary. Until then, sign nothing.

Yes, that would be legal. However, you would be giving up any rights you have to benefits under the trust. You are under no obligation to sign away your rights as a beneficiary under a trust.

If you know the attorney who drafted the trust you should discuss the situation with her/him. You should have access to a copy and the attorney's name should be on it. If that attorney is no longer available then consult with your own attorney. You should determine why your father wants you to waive your interest in the trust and perhaps review the trust assets.

The question is ambiguous, but generally, there is no particular advantage to capital gains for a trust v. an individual. It's still the same rate.

I can't think of any reason why you would. You can always just make the payments. If the payments are made, the mortgage company probably won't even blink.

If he left a Will, it would be there. If not, it would be whatever your state's intestacy laws provide for a surviving spouse. If he had retirement assets or life insurance, those are disposed of by beneficiary designation. Bank accounts might also pass outside of probate, if held in a joint tenancy with right of survivorship or payable on death account. Start with whatever records you have, and then start asking questions.

You have whatever interest is bequeathed you under the Will. If that's an "equity interest" (whatever that is), then, yes. You only acquire your interest upon the death of the testator. Until that happens you have no interest in any property devised to you in a will. Clarification: If you are asking whether you have an expectancy under the Will of a testator who is still alive, no. The Will can be revoked as long as the testator has capacity. An exception would be in a situation in which the testator has obligated himself by contract to make you his beneficiary.

You will not get paid twice if that's what you're asking. Generally, medical forms you will need to fill out always ask if you have other insurance. The two companies will make an arrangement to co-ordinate the payment of your bills relating to the accident.

I wouldn't. Just make sure the payments continue to be made.

Yes, it can. The FHA does this to protect the people it services though its loan programs. It also protects the the entire FHA system including lender AND buyers in the event of a default of the buyer, and the property has to be resold. In that case, the FHA system, which "backs" the lender, will not have to spend the money to upgrade the property to meet codes. Since this protection is its aim, the FHA requires that houses bought with FHA money meet certain standards and this means that the house cannot be transferred in a poor condition. Some repairs will have to be made prior to FHA approval, but the cost of making them can be shifted to the buyer by increasing the sale price.