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Tennessee Estate Planning Questions & Answers
2 Answers | Asked in Estate Planning and Real Estate Law for Tennessee on
Q: Are there legal provisions that allow an owner of a shared, inherited property to sell his/her share?

My siblings and I inherited riverfront property which I don't use. My siblings, who along with their kids use the property, won't buy me out. I don't want my kids to inherit the 'problem' and am looking for a way to solve the situation. Can I trigger a market sell? Or some other action?

Bennett James Wills
Bennett James Wills
answered on Dec 14, 2022

You can force a sale (or buy out) through a partition action with the courts.

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1 Answer | Asked in Estate Planning and Real Estate Law for Tennessee on
Q: I received a letter from a lawyer saying a deceased man with my last name left an estate and he is looking for relatives

Is this a scam?

Nina Whitehurst
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answered on Nov 24, 2022

Maybe. Maybe not. Ask him for a copy of the death certificate and letters of administration.

1 Answer | Asked in Estate Planning, Family Law and Elder Law for Tennessee on
Q: Can a will be contested if the deceased was not competent while signing the will? Example: dementia.
Nathaniel R Ogle
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Nathaniel R Ogle
answered on Nov 21, 2022

Yes, one can contest the probate of such a will under those circumstances in Tennessee. I would suggest you speak to qualified legal counsel to pursue this action.

1 Answer | Asked in Estate Planning for Tennessee on
Q: If I endorse and deposit a distribution check from irrevocable trust, can I still initiate a claim that I am due more?

I received a distribution check from a trust and an email from the trustee saying that the check closes out the trust.

The trust was created in Tennessee and is governed by Tennessee law.

Anthony M. Avery
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answered on Nov 4, 2022

If you are going to sue the Trustee for malfeasance, then do not cash the check. The Trust may have relevant terms to such distributions. The Trustee will argue that acceptance of the check waived any dispute about its amount. Hire your attorney now, but be careful about what Jurisdiction you... View More

1 Answer | Asked in Estate Planning for Tennessee on
Q: how to transfer MI formed trust to Tenn
Nina Whitehurst
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answered on Oct 28, 2022

This can be accomplished by either amending or restating the trust, with restatement being more common for other reasons.

1 Answer | Asked in Family Law, Estate Planning and Probate for Tennessee on
Q: My dad passed away and he has a will his wife left town with will we haven’t seen it can we see it with his attorney
Anthony M. Avery
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answered on Oct 18, 2022

Without physical possession of a Will it is very difficult to prove its existence. You may wish to start an Intestate Administration, but first consult with a competent attorney to see if Probate is needed. Remember a surviving spouse cannot be disinherited, and is entitled to a large amount of... View More

1 Answer | Asked in Estate Planning and Probate for Tennessee on
Q: In Tennessee who pays an existing mortgage with a Living Will, the Life tenant or the remaindermen?

My deceased father's WILL listed monies from a home that was sold outside of the current estate to be used for payments but that account was co-owned by my father and I which I was told left me as the owner. I was told I did not have to use those funds to pay the mortgage but I did anyway... View More

Anthony M. Avery
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answered on Oct 12, 2022

It sounds like you were joint owner of a bank account, which left you the sole owner at Father's death. So the Will did not include such money even if it had such a clause. The remaindermen takes the real property as they vests in possession, which here is subject to a Deed of Trust. If... View More

1 Answer | Asked in Estate Planning for Tennessee on
Q: I was my aunt's beneficiary on her life insurance. Her husband says give to him or sue me. Can I be sued for it.

Life insurance was in Kentucky. I live in Nashville TN

Nina Whitehurst
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answered on Oct 6, 2022

Anyone can sue anybody for anything so, yes, you can be sued. The real question is who would win. Most likely you would win, unless there are other facts that you have not provided. You can take some comfort in knowing that it is unlikely that any (good) attorney would take that case on behalf... View More

1 Answer | Asked in Estate Planning and Probate for Tennessee on
Q: IF THERE ARE CERTAIN ITEMS IN A DECEASED PERSONS HOUSE OR ESTATE DOES OWNERSHIP OF THOSE ITEMS GO BACK TO THE PERSON WHO

BOUGHT AND GAVE THOSE ITEMS AS GIFTS, OR DO THOSE ITEMS REMAIN AS PART OF THE ESTATE PROPERTY. MY SISTER AND I ARE BOTH EXEC. AS WELL AS 50 / 50 ON THE ESTATE. SHE THINKS SHE GETS EVERYTHING SHE HAS

EVER BOUGHT AND GIVEN MY PARENTS OVER THE YEARS. SOME OF IT FROM 20 TO 30 YEARS AGO. TO ME... View More

Nina Whitehurst
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answered on Sep 7, 2022

Gifts transfer ownership of the gifted item from the giver to the recipient(s). Items your sister gave her parents belong in their estates. They do not automatically go back to her. If she wants those items back, then they would come out of her share of the estate.

1 Answer | Asked in Estate Planning and Probate for Tennessee on
Q: I desperately need help with a trust fund lawyer.I need my sister removed as trustee as I am the beneficiary.

My dad's will has specific details on what to do and my sister is not complying with anything. She won't even respond to my text, call's, or email. I need help. I'm going to be homeless if she isn't going to help me.

Tim Akpinar
Tim Akpinar
answered on Sep 1, 2022

A Tennessee attorney could advise best, but there was urgency in your post, which must have gotten overlooked in the "Uncategorized" heading. Repost your question in the Probate and Estate Planning categories, or you could also reach out to attorneys in those categories. There's a... View More

1 Answer | Asked in Estate Planning, Real Estate Law and Probate for Tennessee on
Q: My mother passed with no will in Tennessee my brother, her 4 grandkids, her husband and I all live in the home help!

Home owned solely by her she her voiced wishes without a will to have the home transferred to my brother and I and set to transfer to her grandkids and for us to let her husband live in the home till he passes and us make sure he is cared for. Her husband agreed to honor her wishes and voiced this... View More

Anthony M. Avery
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answered on Aug 24, 2022

If Mother owned the home individually, then you, your brother and her Husband each own 1/3 undivided interests as tenants in common. No Detainer Warrant amongst the owners, but the grandchildren could be ousted. A Partition Suit may be in order. Someone has to keep paying taxes.

1 Answer | Asked in Estate Planning and Probate for Tennessee on
Q: Is a printed out will valid in tennessee as long as it's signed by the Testator and in the presence of two witnesses
Bennett James Wills
Bennett James Wills
answered on Aug 19, 2022

A last will and testament must be signed by the testator and two adult witnesses to be valid.

1 Answer | Asked in Estate Planning and Civil Litigation for Tennessee on
Q: Married with unsecure financial debt in my name only. We reside in TN in the event of my death is my wife responsible
Anthony M. Avery
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answered on Aug 9, 2022

Usually if not in her name, she is not responsible. But a creditor can argue some debts were a necessity, like medicals, food, rent, etc, and still sue her.

2 Answers | Asked in Estate Planning for Tennessee on
Q: My grandmother died in 1994. She left property behind. I pay taxes on it but have no rights. What steps can I take?
Anthony M. Avery
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answered on Aug 8, 2022

Hire a competent attorney to determine Heirship, then and now. It will not be easy, and locating other Heirs may be impossible. Quit Claim Deeds or a Partition Sale may be the final result.

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2 Answers | Asked in Estate Planning, Family Law and Probate for Tennessee on
Q: My dad was executor and refused the role so I was forced to handle everything.

My dad was put on my grandma's will as executor and when she passed he wrote a text message denying the rple as executor I was then forced to take care of everything regarding my grandma's funeral my dad then went to the bank and told everybody he is the executor. I ended up paying For... View More

Scott John Terry
Scott John Terry
answered on Aug 2, 2022

Depending on the size of your grandmother's estate, you need to start a probate proceeding and have yourself appointed as the executor of your grandmother's estate. If her estate is smaller than $100k, then you can avoid probate and handle it via a small estate affidavit. An attorney... View More

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2 Answers | Asked in Estate Planning and Probate for Tennessee on
Q: How to remove a lawyer from an administrator position in estate of my husband?

The court appointed the probate lawyer to be an administrator in my husband 's estate,so basically I would like him to be removed from this position and estate to be closed. I just simply do not trust him.

Anthony M. Avery
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answered on Jul 20, 2022

That is a motion to remove the administrator for cause, and maybe an accounting. You will need some definite reasons to talk the Judge into removing someone he appointed a fiduciary. Not trusting him will not suffice. Also a proposed successor administrator will need to be suggested, such as... View More

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1 Answer | Asked in Estate Planning for Tennessee on
Q: Can a LLC be put in a trust in tennessee
Nina Whitehurst
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answered on Jul 15, 2022

Yes, you can, but you shouldn't do this without the advice and assistance of an experienced estate planning attorney to make sure it is does correctly and that you make the right tax elections.

1 Answer | Asked in Estate Planning for Tennessee on
Q: My in-laws had their will/trust drawn up by a company that’s no longer in business. How do we find the original?

The company was Mid-South Estate Planning, which seems to have been charged with fraud or illegal practice.

Nina Whitehurst
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answered on Jun 28, 2022

In the "old days" attorneys did routinely hold original wills in their safes. This was in part due to the fact that most regular folk could not afford their own safes and partly due to the attorney's desire to handle the probate when the client died. Now that safes are more... View More

2 Answers | Asked in Estate Planning and Probate for Tennessee on
Q: If a will can't be found and the estate goes to probate, does the length of marriage factor into what a spouse receives?

For example, if your 75 year old father got married a year before he died, will probate court take into consideration that his "wife" was only so for a year, where as his money and assets were acquired over the lifetime of his 40plus year marriage to the mother of his two grown children,... View More

Nina Whitehurst
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answered on Jun 27, 2022

That is a good question because the surviving spouse's share is different depending on whether or not there is a will. If there is no will, like my colleague Mr. Avery stated, the surviving spouse's share is determined by the laws of intestate succession. At the risk of oversimplifying,... View More

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1 Answer | Asked in Estate Planning for Tennessee on
Q: I am marrying on 7/7. If I put assets I want to protect in a revocable living trust before I marry, will this suffice?

We were gonna do a prenup but we did not realize it was so complicated. All I need to do is protect some assets(i.e. inheritance, brokerage accounts, etc.) from my future wife's creditors, lawyers, or a judge in the unlikely event of a divorce. We have cohabited for 12 years and all our... View More

Bennett James Wills
Bennett James Wills
answered on Jun 21, 2022

Assets in your name acquired before marriage are not marital property by statute. Those items cannot be garnished just by way of marriage; a judgment of any type would need to be against you for a creditor to garnish/levy the asset. If you have significant pre-marital assets, you would be wise to... View More

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