Succession / Estate Question...

[Btl_Rkt_Sci]

So, VERY general question here. I have no experience with handling a deceased relative's estate because I'm still pretty young. I've seen a few people at work take off days at a time to go visit an attorney over estate/succession stuff and it all seems like a lot of work and very expensive on account of the lawyer. So here's my question:

Assuming you and your siblings have a good relationship and in the absence of a will, no after-the-fact debates or arguments...an ideal situation in happyville, what items actually REQUIRE and attorney's involvement to make sure all of the appropriate legal precautions are taken? I'm implying here that the siblings have discussed who gets what, agreed, and are just ready to make it "official". Just items with deeds or titles like houses, vehicles and land? Do you only have to involve an attorney in the event that a will is under dispute or items not on the will are under dispute? Or is there a legal obligation in involve an attorney to enforce the will?

 

[Emperor]

Strange. After the succession, my husband was legally entitled to one fourth of 50%. His father only inherited 50% of her assets. Four kids got the rest from a real estate sale.

But if the spouse of the deceased is still living, he/she is still in control of family assets. eg house, cars, property, etc. Unless a separate will in question specifically grants siblings (and/or others), specific things; the living spouse can do whatever they want with the assets.

The OP has stated that the authenticity of the will is in question; or there may be shenanigans on how it was obtained from the incoherent dad. That is a declaration of war in the family!

I have been witness to many a sibling getting screwed out of personal property and assets of their fathers/moms in the exact scenario and despite a will. And if there is a step-mom or dad involved, forget it!

I stick by my advice that the OP should try his best to have the family agree to divide the assets civilly and equitably.

 

[Emperor]

So, VERY general question here. I have no experience with handling a deceased relative's estate because I'm still pretty young. I've seen a few people at work take off days at a time to go visit an attorney over estate/succession stuff and it all seems like a lot of work and very expensive on account of the lawyer. So here's my question:

Assuming you and your siblings have a good relationship and in the absence of a will, no after-the-fact debates or arguments...an ideal situation in happyville, what items actually REQUIRE and attorney's involvement to make sure all of the appropriate legal precautions are taken? I'm implying here that the siblings have discussed who gets what, agreed, and are just ready to make it "official". Just items with deeds or titles like houses, vehicles and land? Do you only have to involve an attorney in the event that a will is under dispute or items not on the will are under dispute? Or is there a legal obligation in involve an attorney to enforce the will?

Pm Sent.

 

[Cat]

But if the spouse of the deceased is still living, he/she is still in control of family assets. eg house, cars, property, etc. Unless a separate will in question specifically grants siblings (and/or others), specific things; the living spouse can do whatever they want with the assets.

The OP has stated that the authenticity of the will is in question; or there may be shenanigans on how it was obtained from the incoherent dad. That is a declaration of war in the family!

I have been witness to many a sibling getting screwed out of personal property and assets of their fathers/moms in the exact scenario and despite a will. And if there is a step-mom or dad involved, forget it!

I stick by my advice that the OP should try his best to have the family agree to divide the assets civilly and equitably.

In control is not ownership. A spouse retains 100% use of shared possessions, car, home etc. but once it is sold, children are entitled to a proportion.

 

[Cat]

I agree though amicably is the best solution.

 

[JadeRaven]

There is some terrible advice in this thread.

Spend a little money and get advice from a real succession attorney.

 

[deepsouthshooter]

I remember this section of the Louisiana bar exam...like a terrible nightmare.

The only good advice: PLEASE consult an attorney that specializes in wills/estate planning/successions.

The loss of a friend, family member or anybody else you care about is terrible and I am sorry for your loss.

Best wishes on resolving the situation.

 

[Bullet]

I hate to divulge alot of personal information, but I guess considering the topic it can't really be helped. I imagine with the range of folks on BS that someone has experience on this topic that can share some information, or maybe we have an estate lawyer around here that could give a few freebie answers..

My father died in November of last year. He and my mother were married for 30 years. They had three children including me, all of us over 24 and none of us disabled in any way. He had no other children.

My father spent his last week in hospice dying of liver failure. He was heavily medicated, was barely conscious or coherent throughout the day and could barely speak. My mother had a will written up for him by a family acquaintance two or three days before the death. Since my father's death, we (mother and children together) have not had a "reading of the will" as it were, or any official or unofficial conversations on the topic.

My first question is: Given the above information, would whatever will he signed in hospice likely be considering valid or invalid in court, were it to go that way?

My father and mother owned their current home since 1998. It is not paid off. I believe, but am not entirely sure, that the home was purchased "in my mother's name" if that means anything, though obviously they were married at the time. I say I'm not entirely sure because my parents never shared much personal information with me or my siblings. They did not have any other real estate. My mother has indicated a possible desire to sell the house.

My second question is: If my father's hospice will were declared invalid, does my father's 1/2 of the house belong in thirds to me and my siblings, with our mother able to live there usufruct until she dies or wishes to move? If she wishes to sell the house, would law dictate that 1/2 of any profit go in thirds to the children?


This is probably a bit more open-ended, but following up to the circumstances about the house...

My sister and her family have been living in the house as well since last summer. Does that play in to the situation in some kind of way?



I'm fairly distressed by this situation. My parents did not have alot of money, and since my father's death my mother has basically indicated a desire to just sell all of his belongings because she's worried about her own financial well-being. Literally she has talked about just putting all his stuff on eBay or craigslist or in a garage sale if it can be sold, and throwing it in the dumpster if it can't. Meanwhile, my sister who lives there totally eggs this on and brags about the fact that she and her husband sold all they could of her husband's father's possessions after his death and junked the rest. I've tried to broach the subject with them a few times over these months and they basically just blow me off and talk about moving forward with the eBay/garage sale/dumpster plans this summer.

There are things my father owned that I view as having no substantial monetary value in an estate situation, but immeasurable sentimental value to me. Different items with cash values under $500 or so. Seriously...we're not talking about lucrative oil rights to some multi-million dollar acreage. We're talking about the hunting rifle I bought him for his birthday last year, that we went shooting a month before his death in what was the last father-son outing we ever had. I mean Christ, I'm tearing up just thinking about some of this stuff. I go back and forth being saddened and enraged, and don't know what else to do at this point besides using the threat of a legal strong-arm to force the conversation.

Many parish assessors have online searchs to find the owner of property. Or you can all the assessor's office with the address and they will tell you who owns the property.

I have seen Wills contested because a person did not have the capacity to understand what they were doing when they signed the Will or were improperly infuenced to sign a Will. Because because it can be hard for a court to determine what a person was capable of doing when they signed they Will it maybe difficult to prove. Just being able to sign the Will sort of suggests they knew what they were doing. However, a person who is right handed that suffered a stroke and was paralized on the right side and signed with a nice neat signature may be questionable.