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I am a personal representative for my father's estate. my city is suing my brother, the family business and my father's estate regarding a building we are in the process of demoing. Can I appear as the representative or do we need a lawyer to represent the estate?
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answered on Jan 10, 2024
In South Dakota, as in many states, a personal representative of an estate generally cannot represent the estate in legal proceedings unless they are a licensed attorney. This is because appearing in court and advocating on behalf of an estate is considered the practice of law, and non-attorneys... View More 
Can we leave all the stuff in the house and let it go back to the bank?
answered on Jun 26, 2024
Hello,
Thank you for the inquiry. Generally under SDCL 29A-3-703, a personal representative (aka executor) of an estate in South Dakota has a fiduciary duty to preserve the assets and act in the best interest of the estate. It is difficult to know how this may apply to your specific... View More
answered on Apr 2, 2023
A will is a relatively simple legal instrument that a reasonably intelligent person ought to be able to prepare on their own without a problem.
Nevertheless, we frequently see situations where a reasonably intelligent person has botched one. I just handled a probate for a man who botched... View More
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answered on Mar 11, 2023
I'm sorry, it seems like the message got cut off. Can you please provide more context or complete your message?
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answered on Feb 10, 2021
When an initial trustee passes, the successor trustee who is next in line automatically succeeds to the role. If there is no successor trustee, then look to see if the trust has a trust protector who can appoint someone to fill the role. Or sometimes the trust allows the income beneficiaries or... View More
I came to the marriage with 2 children. We had 2 more. My husband wants them to be equal beneficiaries, but the online will we used just says "References in the Will to my "children" shall refer to all children of mine whether born or adopted subsequent to the date of this will.... View More
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answered on Feb 24, 2020
Yes, this can be done. An estate planning attorney can help you do this correctly. Online forms are very limited in what they can accomplish.
answered on Aug 1, 2017
Still potentially too complex to state for sure. Does his net worth include assets in joint name or with beneficiaries, etc.
http://sdlegislature.gov/Statutes/Codified_Laws/DisplayStatute.aspx?Type=Statute&Statute=29A-2
will answer your question, but you're going to have... View More
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