Q: My father passed away in PR I am his only surviving son. How can I transfer everything to my name as well as his paymen

A: Hello and thank you for using Justia. Happy New Year.

You will need to create an Estate for your beloved Father. This is done by hiring an Attorney in Puerto Rico to prepare the documents required to declare the inheritors.

First the search for a Testament will be done. If none is found then a Probate process will be filed in Court. This includes all your siblings and his wife. You will need to do the same process for each of your siblings. Once the Court resolution is issued, then an Inheritance tax return is submitted and a tax release is issued by the tax departament (Hacienda).

You then verify if the same process needs to be done for your Grandmother. This second process will allow the property to Transfer from your Grandmother's name to your Father's and Uncle's names. The first process will allow the Property to be registered in the names of your Father's inheritors.

As for the house built by your Father, you need to verify if it is registered and in whose name. This will all be handled by the Attorney of the Estate that you hire.

If you need additional information please feel free to contact me directly.

A: Greetings:

Before you try to establish or create an Estate through your legal representative by filing the correspondent civil action thought a court of law in the jurisdiction where the assets and properties are located, you have to identify the specific documents that will establish proprietary ownership. Given that the property is in someone else's name, and there are other parties that share interest on the said property, there maybe a chance that the other parties on record may want to challenges or contest ownership of the property. This is why it's so important to have the proper documentation and create the Estate to guarantee that all the rights of every heir and the will and testament are followed and respected.

There are a few other probate procedures have to be addressed, in terms of the property and all the heirs involved, as well as to examine whether the property is registered.

If you have any other questions you can contact our firm directly and we will be glad to be at your service.