Get free answers to your Probate legal questions from lawyers in your area.
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... View 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,... View More
I am the guardian of my grandkids and I would like to get them switched to my Medicaid case. I know that they will go after the mother to pay for child support, but what about the dad if there isn't one listed? There is a dad listed in the probate case but he isn't on the birth... View More
answered on Mar 23, 2023
The state will probably seek paternity and a support order on the child's behalf.
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... View More
We had hired a lawyer to assist in having our son declared an incapacitated adult, and to have ourselves assigned as his guardian. It's been several years since this was done, and the attorney has asked to be removed as the attorney of record. We cannot find how to do that - which form or... View More
answered on Mar 14, 2023
That attorney would need to file a petition to withdraw. You as the client could stipulate to that, in which case I don't think a judge would have a problem signing.
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... View 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... View 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... View 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... View More
My brother in law passed away intestate in Michigan 2021, leaving 2 adult sons, no assets. There was never a need to open an estate.
My mother in law passed recently intestate in Georgia and has real estate, etc.
Before we can file for an estate for my mother in law, we have to... View More
answered on Jan 28, 2023
The short answer is 'yes' whenever you open an estate you have to do a LOT of things, including publishing.
The longer answer is -- there are a lot of things that are required, starting with determining whether or not a probate estate is REALLY necessary. How do you come to the... View More
answered on Jan 26, 2023
I'm sorry to hear of your loss.
IF your brother owned the house solely, it will need to go through probate, and his heirs (maybe your mother, maybe not ... it depends on whether or not he had a will, or children, or a spouse etc. none of which you say) so that SOMEONE (be that his... View More
As the beneficiary of a deceased insured, do I have the legal right to give the insurance company authorization to
Disclose the deceased, personal medical information? I am the deceased’s wife. They want me to sign a paper and give them that right. Is that legal for me to do? I did have... View More
answered on Jan 25, 2023
The Michigan statutes on decisions to be made regarding the body of a dead person use the term "next of kin" to refer to the class of persons who can make such decisions. As the widow, you would be the "next of kin". Therefore, you would be a person with authority to make... View More
My mother died last week and lived in an apartment above her married boyfriends garage. He claims she had previously given him authority over everything in the event of her death and that he couldn't find the paper. He has thus far managed to make all the arrangements, have her body moved to... View More
answered on Jan 16, 2023
First, I'm sorry for your loss. You may or may not need to become executor of your mother's estate. In Michigan, the executor is called the personal representative of the estate. You may wish to seek appointment as personal representative of the estate if your mother had assets which... View More
Scenario is settling affairs of second to die spouse with A/B trust in place along with pour-over will, and personal property transfer document. First settlor died 15 years ago, second settlor is still alive.
Irrevocable portion of trust currently contains properly titled real property and... View More
answered on Dec 21, 2022
It sounds like you are on the right track, based on what information you provided in your question. The decision whether probate is necessary usually hinges on whether there are any assets which require probate administration. Opening a probate estate is sometimes done even if there are not assets,... View More
My mother wants to pass the house on to me when she passes, but she also has the potential to be in long term care in the couple years. Will medicare take our house if she goes into long term care (or do they even currently have a lien due to my deceased father being in a nursing home)? How can we... View More
answered on Dec 5, 2022
There are ways to keep the house from being 'recovered' by Medicare (in Michigan) currently, but you need to insure it is done right or your mother may not be ELIGIBLE for Medicare.
Seek the advice and drafting assistance of a local probate / elder law attorney to be sure you do... View More
They never shared a marital home he lived with my mother the entire time. She chose to live with her ex-husband and their two youngest children. Unfortunately, my nephew died in the hospital not because of the treatment the doctors were giving him, but because of his lifestyle the treatments... View More
answered on Nov 21, 2022
Certain people have the right to participate in probate court proceedings for a decedent estate. These people are called "interested persons" as defined by Michigan law. For example, a deceased person's spouse is an interested person. If the deceased person had any surviving... View More
answered on Oct 23, 2022
Unlikely. While there is a process to place a will with the probate court for a fee, few people do so. The court would otherwise not have a copy of the will. Your options are to 1) keep searching through personal files and hope you find it, or 2) figure out which attorney may have drafted the will... View More
Does that legally mean it’s just her money or would that money have to go into an estate and be split
answered on Oct 6, 2022
Bank accounts that have a payable on death beneficiary designation on them pass outside of probate. That means if your father-in-law named someone as a beneficiary to his bank account, the money belongs to that person, and that person alone, upon your father-in-law's death. That person (she?)... View More
No will. My mother is deceased. She has been remarried for 9 years, her spouse is a Texas resident. She had a home in Michigan for 22 years
The home is in her name. Her domicile is in Texas. There will not be probate in Texas, no property. She also has 4 adult children. Who will receive... View More
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answered on Sep 30, 2022
With land in MI, her Heirs take, which will be her issue surviving and her surviving Spouse, all as Tenants In Common. Hire a MI attorney to search the Title, determine Heirs and record an Affidavit of Heirship, unless there is a Probate. The former will be the Heirs' recorded source of title.
I have asked to see them but they have refused to show the documents to me
answered on Sep 30, 2022
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... View More
The home is in her name. Her domicile is in Texas. There will not be probate in Texas, no property. She also has 4 adult children. Who will receive the home according to probate in Michigan. Trying to sell currently over 100,000. Can her spouse sign a quit claim deed to a certain person?
answered on Sep 27, 2022
According to Michigan’s rules of intestate succession (when someone dies without a will), as of 2021, the surviving spouse inherits the first $243,000 plus 3/4th of the value of the remaining assets. In short, assuming the market value of the house is $243,000 or less, the house solely belongs to... View More
My brother was in a terrible motorcycle accident and is currently on a ventilator. He has never been married and has no children and lives byhimself. My sister is trying to get legal guardianship without the consent of myself and my other brother. How can I handle this?
answered on Sep 27, 2022
Hi. It looks like you’re in Virginia so the law may differ from Michigan’s where I practice. However, generally, consent is not required from all interested parties. Yet, as an interested party, you do have the legal right to object to your sister’s appointment as guardian if you believe she... View More
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