Q: My parents died within 24 hours, my dad first my mom 2nd. Which will do we abide by? Also one of my siblings
Is deceased and our parents wills only name each other as heirs. Does estate flow to living siblings equally?
A: The simple answer is you abide by both, usually, but in reality this question cannot be answered completely without reviewing the wills. For example, your dad might have left things to your mom but only if she survived him by a certain number of days. If she did not survive that long, then she will not inherit from him. But that would only change the size of her estate. She might still have her own estate that needs to be probated. Regarding the deceased sibling, again, there is no way to answer that question without seeing how the wills are worded. It could be that the deceased sibling's share goes to the other siblings, or the deceased sibling's share could go to his or her descendants. You should take both wills and their death certificates to a probate attorney for assistance.
A: In NC, when two people die with 120 hours of each other, they are treated as dying at the same time as each other. Any joint property would pass 50% under one will and 50% under the other will, and any individually owned property would pass per the will. I highly recommend that you hire an attorney to assist you with this process because there will be multiple areas where a decision is going to need to be made regarding the status of the property at the time of death.
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