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Estate Planning Questions & Answers
Q: My mother passed while she was on medicaid. All she had were 2 small insurance policies ( 5k per). Do I need to probate
1 Answer
| Asked
in
Estate Planning, Insurance Bad Faith and Probate
for
Pennsylvania
on
Answered on Sep 23, 2018
Answered on Sep 23, 2018
Elizabeth Tarasi's answer
The insurance policy usually names a benificiary. Generally you do not probate when the only assets are insurance policies.
The insurance policy usually names a benificiary. Generally you do not probate when the only assets are insurance policies.
Q: What should be included in a final will and testament?
T. J. Jesky's answer
All of your personal and real property, and your instructions, who and how the property is to be distributed to your heirs.
It is for this reason, you should find a local attorney who can help you properly prepare your final will and testament.
All of your personal and real property, and your instructions, who and how the property is to be distributed to your heirs.
It is for this reason, you should find a local attorney who can help you properly prepare your final will and testament.
Q: I have an adult daughter receiving SSI disability.Her name is on my utility bills, bank accounts, etc., as I want her to
1 Answer
| Asked
in
Banking, Social Security and Estate Planning
for
Maryland
on
Answered on Sep 23, 2018
Answered on Sep 23, 2018
Mark Oakley's answer
She should not have any assets in her name or jointly with yours. You should establish a special needs trust to hold any assets you leave her in your will. That will protect the assets from disqualifying her from her benefits, while at the same time preserving the assets for her benefit and needs.
She should not have any assets in her name or jointly with yours. You should establish a special needs trust to hold any assets you leave her in your will. That will protect the assets from disqualifying her from her benefits, while at the same time preserving the assets for her benefit and needs.
Q: Iam a Trustee on Dads will & Trust. He recently passed 1 month ago. I have 4 siblings. If there are no instructions how
Sally Bergman's answer
These are all questions that should be answered by the terms of the trust. If you have any doubt, you need to have an attorney look at the trust document and evaluate what needs to be done.
These are all questions that should be answered by the terms of the trust. If you have any doubt, you need to have an attorney look at the trust document and evaluate what needs to be done.
Q: My husband died recently, does his grown children have a right to claim part of his estate?
Terry Lynn Garrett's answer
If your husband left a Will, his Will governs except for assets on which there was a designated beneficiary (such as life insurance, a 401k or IRA or a pay on death or joint with right of survivorship bank account).
If your husband did not leave a Will, the Texas laws of descent and distribution govern (again, except for assets on which there was a designated beneficiary) . If he has children who are not also your children, they are entitled to part of his estate. However, you have...
If your husband left a Will, his Will governs except for assets on which there was a designated beneficiary (such as life insurance, a 401k or IRA or a pay on death or joint with right of survivorship bank account).
If your husband did not leave a Will, the Texas laws of descent and distribution govern (again, except for assets on which there was a designated beneficiary) . If he has children who are not also your children, they are entitled to part of his estate. However, you have...
Q: How would creating a lifetime revocable trust allow me to avoid probate?
David Lacher's answer
No probate is required for trust-owned/trust-titled assets. The trustee is responsible for distributing those assets in accordance with the terms of the trust, without separate court permission, without separate waivers or consents from any third parties, and without additional separate authority needing to be granted to the trustee. But the main point is, the mere creation of such a trust accomplishes nothing by itself. Once the trust is created, all the individuals’s assets must be...
No probate is required for trust-owned/trust-titled assets. The trustee is responsible for distributing those assets in accordance with the terms of the trust, without separate court permission, without separate waivers or consents from any third parties, and without additional separate authority needing to be granted to the trustee. But the main point is, the mere creation of such a trust accomplishes nothing by itself. Once the trust is created, all the individuals’s assets must be...
Q: How does an advanced healthcare directive work in the context of estate planning?
Richard Winblad's answer
It has to do with decisions. While it does not determine how an estate is divided, it is an end of life document that communicates your wishes regarding medical treatments if you become unable to speak for yourself.
It has to do with decisions. While it does not determine how an estate is divided, it is an end of life document that communicates your wishes regarding medical treatments if you become unable to speak for yourself.
Q: mom loving hpuse. No rent just bills and up and left now power if off
1 Answer
| Asked
in
Estate Planning, Family Law, Real Estate Law and Landlord - Tenant
for
Pennsylvania
on
Answered on Sep 21, 2018
Answered on Sep 21, 2018
Kathryn Hilbush's answer
I'm sorry but I don't see a question here. Maybe your best bet is o make an appointment with a family law attorney to discuss your situation.
I'm sorry but I don't see a question here. Maybe your best bet is o make an appointment with a family law attorney to discuss your situation.
Q: Do estranged family members have to be notified when my father passes away? He demands they know nothing about his death
Richard Winblad's answer
If a probate is filed your state will likely require that they be notified as an heir even if the Will disinherited them. Check with a Colorado attorney.
If a probate is filed your state will likely require that they be notified as an heir even if the Will disinherited them. Check with a Colorado attorney.
Q: Father died no Will. Wife & 4 children. Wife says not sharing estate with children. Wife name not on house or cars.
Sara W. Harrington's answer
Your father's widow is allowed to claim a spousal allowance of $30,000 immediately. That is designed to help spouses pay bills until the estate is distributed.
If your father had no will, the estate (after the first $30,000 goes to the widow) will be distributed according to the laws of intestate succession. Under that law, the surviving spouse will receive 50% of the estate and the other 50% is shared by the deceased person's living children and heirs of deceased children. The real...
Your father's widow is allowed to claim a spousal allowance of $30,000 immediately. That is designed to help spouses pay bills until the estate is distributed.
If your father had no will, the estate (after the first $30,000 goes to the widow) will be distributed according to the laws of intestate succession. Under that law, the surviving spouse will receive 50% of the estate and the other 50% is shared by the deceased person's living children and heirs of deceased children. The real...
Q: John owned a home with his father in law as joint tenants iN common. His father in law died, no will, And then john died
Michael David Siegel's answer
It depends on the language of the deeds. Without reviewing anything, your latter analysis seems correct.
It depends on the language of the deeds. Without reviewing anything, your latter analysis seems correct.
Q: My father died last week and my brother changed the locks and threw me out of the home where I had been living
Sara W. Harrington's answer
The answer depends on a lot of factors in order to give you an answer to this question. These questions include:
Did your father own or rent the home?
Was there a mortgage?
Was there a will?
How many other heirs are there to the estate?
I suggest you talk to a local estate administration attorney and bring answers to these questions in order to get a more complete answer to your question.
The answer depends on a lot of factors in order to give you an answer to this question. These questions include:
Did your father own or rent the home?
Was there a mortgage?
Was there a will?
How many other heirs are there to the estate?
I suggest you talk to a local estate administration attorney and bring answers to these questions in order to get a more complete answer to your question.
Q: After the estate is settled and there is a house does it automatically go to the 3 children of the deceased?
Sara W. Harrington's answer
In North Carolina, real estate passes to the heirs on the date of the deceased person's death. Who the real estate is left to is determined by a specific gift of real estate in a will filed with the Clerk of Court's office or it passes under the laws of intestate succession.
According to the laws of intestate succession, if the deceased person is survived by a spouse and children, the spouse gets 50% of the property and the children (and the heirs of deceased children) share in the...
In North Carolina, real estate passes to the heirs on the date of the deceased person's death. Who the real estate is left to is determined by a specific gift of real estate in a will filed with the Clerk of Court's office or it passes under the laws of intestate succession.
According to the laws of intestate succession, if the deceased person is survived by a spouse and children, the spouse gets 50% of the property and the children (and the heirs of deceased children) share in the...
Q: how do you find an estate file? what exactly is an estate file?
1 Answer
| Asked
in
Estate Planning and Real Estate Law
for
North Carolina
on
Answered on Sep 19, 2018
Answered on Sep 19, 2018
Sara W. Harrington's answer
An estate file is the collection of documents filed with the Clerk of Court (in the city in which the deceased individual lived or owned real estate) in reference to the administration or probate of the deceased person's estate. These files are kept in a separate area from civil or criminal files. You should be able to look on the computer system in the Clerk of Court's office under the name of the deceased person to find the file.
An estate file is the collection of documents filed with the Clerk of Court (in the city in which the deceased individual lived or owned real estate) in reference to the administration or probate of the deceased person's estate. These files are kept in a separate area from civil or criminal files. You should be able to look on the computer system in the Clerk of Court's office under the name of the deceased person to find the file.
Q: How do I write up a Bussiness trust 12-2004
1 Answer
| Asked
in
Estate Planning, Business Formation and Business Law
for
Maryland
on
Answered on Sep 19, 2018
Answered on Sep 19, 2018
Cedulie Renee Laumann's answer
The first question any business attorney will likely ask is: what are you looking to accomplish? A business trust is an old but relatively unusual way to conduct business, except perhaps in the case of real estate held in a grantor's revocable living trust. The question doesn't give any facts as to why an "unincorporated business trust" is desired. Most attorneys would ask whether the Grantor determined the tax liability for conducting a business in a trust vs. through a standard or...
The first question any business attorney will likely ask is: what are you looking to accomplish? A business trust is an old but relatively unusual way to conduct business, except perhaps in the case of real estate held in a grantor's revocable living trust. The question doesn't give any facts as to why an "unincorporated business trust" is desired. Most attorneys would ask whether the Grantor determined the tax liability for conducting a business in a trust vs. through a standard or...
Q: Will dad's house pass to immediate family outside of probate in NC?
Sara W. Harrington's answer
In North Carolina, real estate passes to the heirs at the time of death. If there is no will, that is determined by the laws of intestate succession. If there is a will and the real estate was specifically devised to individuals, that would override intestate succession.
Generally real estate is not probated unless it needs to be brought into the estate to pay a bill of the estate.
If all of his personal property is worth less than $20,000, you can settle his estate with an...
In North Carolina, real estate passes to the heirs at the time of death. If there is no will, that is determined by the laws of intestate succession. If there is a will and the real estate was specifically devised to individuals, that would override intestate succession.
Generally real estate is not probated unless it needs to be brought into the estate to pay a bill of the estate.
If all of his personal property is worth less than $20,000, you can settle his estate with an...
Q: I am completing the form AOC-E-506 for my grandmother (2015) and grandfather's (2017) estates as an annual account in NC
Sara W. Harrington's answer
It sounds like you've been doing a lot of the right things, but you could use the assistance of an attorney experienced in estate administration/probate to help you make sure you take care of all the small details that may fall through the cracks. I recommend you contact a local estate attorney for assistance.
It sounds like you've been doing a lot of the right things, but you could use the assistance of an attorney experienced in estate administration/probate to help you make sure you take care of all the small details that may fall through the cracks. I recommend you contact a local estate attorney for assistance.
Q: My estranged father died and became ward of the state. What do I do?
1 Answer
| Asked
in
Public Benefits, Estate Planning, Family Law and Probate
for
North Carolina
on
Answered on Sep 19, 2018
Answered on Sep 19, 2018
Sara W. Harrington's answer
If your father was a ward of the state, someone should have been serving as his guardian or social worker. You might want to contact the agency who was taking responsibility for him to find out about the disposition of his remains. Also, if he was a ward of the state, there is probably no estate to administer, but he may have some personal items that the family can claim. The best thing to do is to contact the guardian or agency and go from there.
If your father was a ward of the state, someone should have been serving as his guardian or social worker. You might want to contact the agency who was taking responsibility for him to find out about the disposition of his remains. Also, if he was a ward of the state, there is probably no estate to administer, but he may have some personal items that the family can claim. The best thing to do is to contact the guardian or agency and go from there.
Q: Must a Mutual Distribution agreement only be the result of a will contest?
Steven Basche's answer
Yes, the beneficiaries can agree on a distribution different from the will without a will contest.
Yes, the beneficiaries can agree on a distribution different from the will without a will contest.
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