Immediate family members (heirs under the Will and heirs at law) are automatically considered "interested persons." So if someone dies with spouse and children, those people are automatically interested persons. More remote family members may be interested persons if they stand to... View More

Generally speaking the laws of the place of the decedent's domicile will control. Estates with property in multiple jurisdictions can get complicated. It may be necessary to open an ancillary estate in Maryland depending on how the property was titled.

Under Maryland law, a person... View More

If someone dies without a Will, the laws of intestate succession apply. Generally speaking, the children of the decedent have right to 1/2 of the estate if the person who died was married.

By law, the Personal Representative (PR) must list all the interested persons, which include all... View More

Since the law makes it illegal to be married to more than one person, the claim of a "common law" spouse seems unlikely to prevail if there has been no intervening divorce. Generally a marriage certificate will establish marriage.

Keep in mind that being a spouse does not... View More

It isn't clear how "old" of a case the post refers to, but generally speaking one can find the docket numbers for closed cases by searching the Maryland Judiciary Case Search by name. One can narrow this down by selecting the specific county and type of case (civil or criminal).

An attorney cannot answer this without looking at the Contract itself. If the Contract has an inspection contingency then generally it will give a certain amount of time where the Buyers must communicate the desire to terminate the Contract due to an unsatisfactory inspection. So long as the... View More

I'll answer from the real estate angle. I'd first verify that in fact you are not on the Deed of Trust. If you are not listed as a borrower, then you have no obligation to the lender and no basis for default although the lender could still foreclose and take the property.

You... View More

Yes, it is possible. My firm does family deed transfers regularly. Each firm sets its own fee, but there is the attorney fee for the deed and the government recording fees ($60 per recording, some counties/jurisdictions have an additional lien release fee).

Maryland law exempts... View More

No. Anyone can buy or sell. However, you should become familiar with the risks and liabilities in that line of work and understand the tax implications.

The Personal Representative has a duty to file the Will with the probate court after the person dies. Once they do so it becomes a matter of public record and anyone can get a copy by going to the Register of Wills. If they do not do so in a timely fashion, any other interested person can... View More

A reverse mortgage usually by its terms must be paid off as soon as the homeowner dies. Other types of mortgages will allow certain family members to assume or keep on paying the mortgage.

Yes, a sibling may apply although the child would have priority to serve. If the daughter consents you can simply file her consent with your petition.

Yes, if the person who died had assets titled in their name. Under Maryland law if a married person dies without a will, the PROBATE property is divided between the spouse and the children. Note that sometimes the property does not pass through probate so it is important to know what goes... View More

When someone dies without a Will the law says how the property gets divided up. For instance, if someone is married without kids, their share gets divided between the surviving spouse and parents. Or if they are married with children it gets divided between the spouse and kids. To make sure that... View More

It depends whether the estate is solvent or not. In other words, is there enough other money in the estate to pay creditors and claims? Generally you would wait 6 months after death to know the extent of any claims against the property. If that time has passed then the distribution by deed... View More

Under Maryland law, a spouse can legally demand 1/3 of the deceased spouse's estate, even if they were left nothing in the Will.

However, a spouse cannot usually demand more than this 1/3. It sounds from your post that the surviving spouse seeks the entire estate.

Your... View More

If nothing has been distributed, this can be done by disclaiming an interest in the estate. If he is already on the deed, he could deed the property to the siblings living in the property. However, since deed transfers can trigger a variety of taxation issues it is wise to seek legal counsel... View More

If the employer was based in Maryland (or the work was performed in Maryland) then the employer would need to follow Maryland's wage and hour laws.

There are two ways to proceed with unpaid wage claims in this state - one can either file a complaint and let government officials... View More

The only way to remove a lien is by satisfying or discharging the debt. One can contact the creditor (here apparently the State) to see about working out a compromise or settlement if compelling reasons exist. In Maryland one would contact the Comptroller's office for state tax matters.

Yes. There is no legal requirement that a spouse join in a loan or purchase (note that a particular lender may set its own policies as far as qualification goes).