Your brother and sister have no obligation to share your mother's power of attorney or your mother's trust with you in a strict legal sense. If your mother is living, then it is likely the trust is revocable and she is the only present beneficiary of the trust, and no one else is entitled... Read more »

Short answer is no. If she has no assets to be probated , and no will to be admitted, there’s no need to open an probate estate in the court. Absent opening an estate in probate court, there’s no legal requirement to publish notice to creditors as they can only file claims against probate assets.

Most likely yes. You have a duty to act in the best interests of the estate and heirs and devisees. You also have a duty to provide reasonable information about the estate and estate property to the heirs and devisees of the estate, especially information pertaining to the financial condition of... Read more »

What was in the written agreement? It's unlikely you can enforce an agreement to "help".

The answer would depend on what exactly the agreement says, and how ownership was transferred out of the estate. Were you on the deed as tenants in common, with your brother and his wife as one-half?

Are you asking if you need to have separate PoAs to name your parents as your agents?

No.

Are you asking if you can create a document to allow you to act for one or both parents?

The answer provided is correct: you can’t do that.

If you have questions or you... Read more »

A Michigan attorney could advise best, but your question remains open for two weeks. I'm sorry for your ordeal. You could reach out to attorneys to discuss, but keep in mind that law firms that handle injury cases might not consider something like this on a contingency basis. There is also the... Read more »

It's unclear from the question whether your brother was a remainderman on a lady bird deed (he only became owner when your mother passed) or whether your brother was a joint tenant with your mother, who had right of survivorship. Either way, if your brother survived your mother, the house... Read more »

The directions given to you by the drafting attorney are correct. When an attorney drafts estate plan documents for a client, the attorney owes the client the duty of confidentiality, even after death. After a client's death, the only person who can waive confidentiality for the client is the... Read more »

While it is true that every trust is unique and needs to be reviewed before definitive answers can be given, some things are 'a given'.

1) you should review your estate plan and trust regularly whether or not someone has died, but when there is a death it is CRITICAL to review... Read more »

Most probate attorneys do not include tax compliance as part of the engagement, but some do. The bottom line is you should discuss this with your probate attorney so that you have clarity regarding who is going to take care of that.

We would need to see the trust agreement to determine whether the property reverts to the grantor(s), or whether title vests in the beneficiaries. If the trust is still revocable (because the grantor(s) are alive, the grantors could revoke the trust and own the property as they choose. There is... Read more »

There are a number of places where you can get inventory values for the things you need.

For valuation of real estate, an appraisal is acceptable but may not be required. Local practice may vary, and other sources of valuation for real estate may also be accepted, such as a Comparative... Read more »

Nothing is automatic except beneficiary designations and joint accounts. But yes, most people's estates do not exceed the spousal elective share and so substantially everything goes to the spouse. That is by design because the public policy behind that is that 1) we can safely presume that... Read more »

By "a wife's rights to everything", I'm assuming you mean the surviving spouse's right to a share of an intestate estate. Generally speaking, if the husband dies leaving a probate estate and leaves a surviving spouse, the surviving spouse is entitled to the first $240,000... Read more »

No -- and there are several issues rattling around in your question that SCREAMS your family need to get real advice from a local estate planning attorney.

If someone lacks 'testamentary capacity' because of dementia or any other illness, they cannot create estate planning... Read more »

Her adoption status will not matter if it was a step-parent adoption; she is both the child of your common parent as well as her step-dad's, and can take from both estates. Likewise, half siblings are treated the same as any other child under the law.

Whether she's entitled to... Read more »

USUALLY the lawyer handles that, but what did your retainer say about who was doing what?

There won't be a 'problem' since the estate doesn't need to be closed for 12 months, but it is important to be sure you know who will be doing what when you hire an attorney. You... Read more »

Yes, there is nothing illegal about that, however employees of the assisted living facility should not serve as witnesses to the signatures on the patient advocate designation.

Never say never. There is always a chance for fighting - someone may alleged that you weren't in your right mind when you made the will, or that you were under undue influence, or that there was a technical error in the document. All of these reasons are why it's important to have an... Read more »