New house owned 36 years. I do not recall any deed information.
answered on May 9, 2023
If your deed was recorded, you can buy a copy from the office of the Register of Deeds for the county where the property was located. If the deed was not recorded, then you may have a problem. You would need to contact the seller if they are alive to get a deed, or possibly the seller's estate... Read more »
This conserns a resident of the house, an inlaw, with sketchy and or shady friends and i do not want things coming up missing before estate disbursment
answered on Apr 27, 2023
The short answer is, yes, you have the right to control access to the house as executor of the estate, subject to two caveats:
(1) you don't have authority to do that unless you have letters of authority from the probate court; and
(2) your right to exclude others on on behalf... Read more »
She'd showed it to me and told me where it was located in her home, along with her safe deposit box key. Now that she has passed away though, my stepfather has not filed it with the probate court, or given me a copy or discussed it with me. I am concerned...
answered on Apr 26, 2023
There is no easy way to do this. You would need to ask someone who knows which attorney your mother used. That attorney may or may not still be alive and practicing law. That attorney may or may not have a copy of the will he/she drafted. If he/she does, it most likely will not be a signed... Read more »
Grandma past away, her husband is in a nursing home. His guardian is selling there property, can they legally do that if there is a beneficiary?
answered on Apr 21, 2023
By beneficiary, I'm assuming you mean there is someone named on the deed who is supposed to get the property when husband passes away.
The short answer to your question is yes, a court appointed guardian or conservator could sell the house with approval of the probate court. That... Read more »
A death notice was posted in the paper and since it was over a year I thought their claim to any estate was over.
answered on Apr 18, 2023
It depends what you mean by "death notice" in a paper. If you mean an obituary, that is not enough. On the other hand, if by "death notice was posted in the paper" you mean a notice to creditors was published in the newspaper by a personal representative under MCL 700.3801 or a... Read more »
There are significant assets that will transfer outside of probate (trust, POD). Is an Order for Assignment of Property sufficient when dealing with miscellaneous entities (post office, locksmiths, utilities, etc)? Or is it advisable to go for Informal Administration. Affairs were not complex -... Read more »
answered on Apr 14, 2023
A petition and order for assignment is one of two Michigan small-estate procedures that can be used when a deceased's probate property is less than $27,000. The other is an affidavit for delivery of certain assets to decedent's successor. You would only use these procedures if the... Read more »
There are significant assets that will transfer outside of probate (trust, POD). Is an Order for Assignment of Property sufficient when dealing with miscellaneous entities (post office, locksmiths, utilities, etc)? Or is it advisable to go for Informal Administration. Affairs were not complex -... Read more »
answered on Apr 16, 2023
Mr Harris is right, but I have found the Post Office (particularly) can be 'dense' and insist on seeing letters of authority before they will do 'anything' -- depending on the local postmaster etc. Go to the post office and try to put in a forwarding order or contact the... Read more »
Michigan. Items were taken by the police, am I entitled to them or do I have to file a probate claim?
answered on Apr 10, 2023
A lady bird deed is only effective to convey real estate. For the other items, they would need to be left to you in a will, or trust, or they would need to be yours under the laws of intestate succession if there is no will or trust. Probate may or may not be necessary depending on the... Read more »
Michigan. Items were taken by the police, am I entitled to them or do I have to file a probate claim?
answered on Apr 10, 2023
I agree with Mr Harris, but I'm compelled to ask -- the POLICE? It is VERY unusual for the police to become involved in such things unless 1) there was violence and/or 2) the items removed were somehow contraband.
YOU ABSOLUTELY NEED to get local legal advice and probably... Read more »
We made a verbal agreement (nothing has been signed) with a person to do an estate sale after our father passed away. The workers she had coming in to help unpack boxes, wanted the guns and ammunition removed from the home because it made them nervous. When we asked the estate sale person about the... Read more »
answered on Apr 9, 2023
Since you do not have a written contract, it is unclear what your legal rights actually are. Maybe you should ask this estate sale auctioneer for a written contract, and for the auctioneer to refrain from selling any more items without that. If you want to approve the price of items or reserve... Read more »
Or do these fall under the step up basis? Like real estate.
answered on Mar 29, 2023
Good question. Whether you must pay income tax on your inheritance of US Savings Bonds depends on your individual tax situation, and can't be answered in this forum or given the limited information here. You should consult a CPA or tax attorney for more information. You can also find some... Read more »
My daughter has been on SSI sense age 16 and is cognitively impaired . Her mom is her payee because she is incapable of handling her own finance's, she is being manipulated by a boyfriend that she's had for about 4 months now and he wants control of her finances and they are both addicts... Read more »
answered on Mar 27, 2023
If you are the parent of someone who is unable to handle his or her own affairs, you can file a petition for guardianship, and if there are assets that need protection, you can also file a petition for conservatorship. A guardian and conservator is someone who is appointed by the court to be... Read more »
I have guardianship of my grandson and there isn't a father listed on his birth certificate but there is on the guardianship paper work. Will they go after this person for child support or will they try to establish paternity first?
This is a follow up question to a question I asked... Read more »
answered on Mar 23, 2023
If the government is going to be on the hook you bet your booty the government is going to be trying to get the father to pay support.
To do that they will need to prove paternity in some way. (You don’t have to pay to support some stranger’s kids after all and momma’s baby,... Read more »
He is not mentally able to handle her estate, nor is his brother (who is also homeless).
answered on Mar 15, 2023
I'm sorry to hear of your loss.
Mr Harris is correct, but it seems like you're trying to get a lawyer to undergo representation via the website. That isn't how this works.
You need to work with the lawyer to RETAIN services, and that involves some phone calls and... Read more »
He is not mentally able to handle her estate, nor is his brother (who is also homeless).
answered on Mar 15, 2023
Yes, a lawyer can represent a person with diminished mental capacity, if the person consents. Under the rules of ethics a lawyer should take whatever steps are necessary to allow a person with diminished capacity to participate in the representation as much as they are capable of doing.
A... Read more »
4 children all in agreement no other assets
answered on Feb 21, 2023
If the total value of all vehicles owned by the deceased does not exceed $60,000 and that the estate of the deceased is not being probated and will NOT be probated then there is an ‘expedited’ process involving only the Secretary of State and not the Probate Court.
But I would STRONGLY... Read more »
My deceased brother had no spouse, children, or living parents and passed w/o a will. 5 of 6 siblings are trying to start Probate and 1 sibling is refusing to cooperate in this process, and won't sign the document to allow for assignment of PR to my sister. What do we do to start Probate?
answered on Feb 27, 2023
You can start the probate process at any time. When someone dies without a will, they die "intestate." This means that any of the decedent's assets will go through the probate processes and administered by the probate judge. The judge will use state statutes to decide on the... Read more »
My deceased brother had no spouse, children, or living parents and passed w/o a will. 5 of 6 siblings are trying to start Probate and 1 sibling is refusing to cooperate in this process, and won't sign the document to allow for assignment of PR to my sister. What do we do to start Probate?
answered on Feb 18, 2023
Ms Archie is correct, but if there is disagreement, it makes a LOT of sense to discuss this with a probate attorney FIRST. Your sibling may well be correct that probate is not necessary.
Explain the facts and why you think probate is needed (it probably is, but it may not be!) and have... Read more »
My deceased brother had no spouse, children, or living parents and passed w/o a will. 5 of 6 siblings are trying to start Probate and 1 sibling is refusing to cooperate in this process, and won't sign the document to allow for assignment of PR to my sister. What do we do to start Probate?
answered on Feb 18, 2023
You do not need a unanimous agreement or consensus amongst the heirs to initiate probate. You file the petition with court, and serve all heirs with the copy of the petition and notice of hearing. The sibling that is not cooperative can then file their objections and explain why either probate is... Read more »
I’m considered a person of interest in a probate case and a relative has been asking a mutual family friend to help get me to sign papers for my deceased grandparents property. I’m not interested in this property at all, however I refuse to speak to nor cooperate with this relative simply... Read more »
answered on Feb 17, 2023
An "interested person" under Michigan law is someone who is entitled to notice in a probate case for due process reasons. Interested persons are notified of the proceedings so they can participate in the process if they want to.
From your question it sounds like you don't... Read more »
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