Q: My mom passed away three months ago and I cannot find a wheel the lawyers out of his how do I find the copy of the will

A: I'm sorry to hear about your mom's passing. Unfortunately, the Power of Attorney expired upon her passing. However, there are a variety of methods that can be used to settle her estate, depending on how much the estate was worth. For instance, if your mom owned real estate and had a Living Trust, then the property that was properly funded into the trust can be seamlessly transferred to her beneficiaries. In addition, the Affidavit process can be used to clear up funds left in bank accounts, or your mom may have designated beneficiaries upon her passing. Of course, there is also a Probate Petition that can be filed to settle larger estates or estates that contain real estate that wasn't funded into a trust. I recommend you call an experienced probate attorney and get advice relevant to your mom's estate and the particular assets she may have left behind.

A: Forgive me for not completely understanding your question. I believe you are saying you have a Power of Attorney, but cannot find your mother's will, so you are asking where you can get a copy of the will. First, all powers of attorney become void when the principal (the person who signed the power of attorney) passes away. So, your mother's power of attorney is no longer valid. Second, if you want to find a copy of your mother's will, you should ask her lawyer for a copy. If the lawyer who prepared it does not have a copy, the only thing you can do is check through your mother's paperwork at her home or safety deposit box to see if she had it. The law does not require wills to be filed anywhere public, so you can't go to the courthouse, county recorder or anywhere else to get a copy. If you have checked everywhere and cannot find it, you have to assume it is lost and proceed as if there is no will. In that case, you would need to add up the dollar value of all her assets and, if the value is higher than $166,250, then you will have to go through the Probate Court process. If not, there is a shorter process you can follow. Best wishes!