Q: In the state of md When a beneficiary of will dies after the maker of the will , who inherits from the beneficiary
The beneficiary and her two sons were named in the will. The will was written in 1988 the maker of the will died in 2009, and the will was probated in 2018 thirty years later and none of the heirs have been notified. The beneficiary has no living siblings just children and nieces and nephews
A: Unfortunately, it is impossible to provide an answer without more details and facts. Consult with a lawyer who can review the will, the dates of death of the maker of the will and the beneficiary, and the beneficiary’s will, if any.
A: Estates will need to be opened for each beneficiary who survived the decedent unless the Will provides differently. This will inevitably be more complex than if the Will had been probated when the decedent passed, but it does not change the result. Mr. Oakley is quite correct that a reliable answer requires reading the Will and reviewing the facts.
A:
Generally, the law "freezes" the scene at the time the Testator (maker of the Will) dies. Depending on how a Will was written, it might require a beneficiary to survive the Testator by a certain amount of time to inherit (for example, 30 days). But typically an estate would need to be opened for the beneficiary who survived the Testator but died before disbursement and whatever they inherit would then get passed through a second estate.
A Personal Representative must notify all interested persons, which would typically include the personal representative of a beneficiary's estate.
As other attorneys suggest, it would be good to consult with an attorney to review the specifics of your particular situation. While this post is not legal advice, I hope that it helps.
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