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My father had a life insurance policy with prudential that named my mother as primary beneficiary and me and my brother as contingent beneficiaries. My parents passed from covid within 22 hours of each other. My father passed 1st and my mother 2nd surviving him by 22 hours on a ventilator. After... View More 
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answered on Apr 25, 2021
You are correct on both accounts. If your mom did not survive your dad by at least 120 hours, then she is deemed to have predeceased him. That would leave his children as the sole heirs of his estate (having died without a will). The insurance proceeds should be paid to you and your other... View More
Live in Tennessee.
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answered on Apr 25, 2021
More facts, including review of the will, are required to answer your question, but if what you say is true, this can probably be handled with an affidavit and a relatively simple court filing, both of which get recorded in the land records. A probate attorney can help you with this.
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answered on Apr 23, 2021
Yes, of course. You are a free agent. You can fire your existing attorney and hire another to pick up where the other left off. Just understand that you might end up paying more in the long run because the second attorney will have to take some time getting up to speed.
Which is being administered by fifth third bank in Illinois. Mother has questions about the trust, and wants to know if she should hire a attorney in Tennessee or Illinois.
answered on Apr 21, 2021
My condolences for your loss. The trust itself should define what State's laws it follows. The trustee should provide a copy of the trust to your Mom. Likely you will find the trust says it follows Illinois law.
Mother has questions about the trust. Does she need a attorney in Tennessee or Illinois. Thank You.
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answered on Apr 20, 2021
You have not provided enough facts to determine where the trust administration is taking place. Most like it is in Illinois, but it could also be in Tennessee, or possibly somewhere else. We would need to see a copy of the trust and would need to understand who is administering the trust and... View More
Mother has questions about the trust . Does she need a attorney in Illinois or Tennessee. Thank you.
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answered on Apr 20, 2021
I recommend her obtaining counsel of a Tennessee attorney first. He should be able to get a copy of the Trust Instrument, and after reading it, advise her. The Trust Corpus and/or Trustee may not be in Illinois or Tennessee. It could involve four or more jurisdictions. Hopefully litigation... View More
They can't buy me out and refuse to sell
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answered on Apr 18, 2021
First, if the title to the house has not already been updated to your names, you need to take care of that. A probate attorney can help you with that.
Then you can hire a real estate litigation attorney to file a lawsuit to force a sale and divide the proceeds among you. This is not... View More
His grandchildren are stating that I am not biologically his and demand a DNA test. He was married to my mother and is on my birth certificate.I also grew up going to his house every other weekend. I was not close to him as an adult My siblings children claim they never heard of me. I never had any... View More
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answered on Apr 6, 2021
If you are his child, then you are an heir and next of kin. Has an Estate been Probated? Probate would probably be in your best interests here. You will need to hire an attorney to look into it and represent you. Otherwise forget about it, as time is of the essence.
There was no abuse of any kind she amended her will several times and added and removed me each time.
Thank you!
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answered on Mar 26, 2021
Yes. You can claim an elective share against the estate and depending on the number of years you were married you can claim a percentage of the net estate.
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answered on Mar 15, 2021
Your Friend may not need a Will, as his assets should be examined first. A Will would have to be very carefully executed, which may not be possible. Hire a competent attorney to examine his situation.
I was supposed to receive half of 401k ( which was supposed to be frozen by guidelines for 18 months) but was released to him. There are annuities also. How do I go about accessing annuities & what if he died? Would I still be able to access annuities?
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answered on Mar 2, 2021
Hopefully you also had a Qualified Domestic Relations Order in addition to your Divorce Decree. Without it there is probably little hope of ever receiving anything from a Retirement Plan. Annuities are a whole separate problem as you have to sue each administrator/trustee in whatever State... View More
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answered on Feb 25, 2021
What is your question? Pertinent facts involve: surviving spouse, children or deceased children; what kinds of properties and debts are involved; and did the Decedent have a Will? Without a Probated Will, the Heirs At Law own his real property, and the Next Of Kin own his personal property.... View More
With his consent, if removed as co-executor, can we stop the IRS from taking assets?
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answered on Feb 24, 2021
Hopefully you have not filed Probate yet. In any event you need a competent attorney to handle this. You are correct that the Brother should not be an Executor, and the Court will not have a problem with that. The Estate should not be victimized by your Brother's tax situation, but it could... View More
My mother passed away Feb. 2021. In 2009 she divided her land and all her assets to me and my sister. The only thing left to deal with is $1100 on a prepaid money card. The company wants me to send the nessecary documents, including the executor of will document. There was no will. They want me to... View More
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answered on Feb 22, 2021
Sometime you can get away with an Affidavit of Heirship. The affiant swears who the heirs and next of kin of the decedent were. Record it then send a copy to the card company with the recording information on its face. The next of kin are the owners of the funds. But if they do not send the... View More
Attorney conspired with his client, knowingly accepted $4,000 in checks written by his client directly from their elderly vulnerable victim's embezzled bank account. A financial exploiting, poverty stricken niece hired an attorney to become aunt's POA and assist her in taking deed to... View More
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answered on Feb 16, 2021
There may be presumptive fraud if the Attorney In Fact deeded the principal's property to himself, or possibly his client. There are SOL's which you may have breached, and you may not have standing. Hire a competent attorney to examine the facts and title. You may or may not have a case.
We have been paying taxes since 2013 just enough to keep it out of foreclosure. The house was left from my husband’s grandmother to his mother and uncle his uncle doesn’t want it and gave a verbal “ok” for us to move in and do what ever but his mom who PAYS NOTHING OR KNOW WHATS GOING ON... View More
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answered on Feb 16, 2021
If the owners do not wish to transfer the property to you, then no. It is their property subject to the Deed of Trust. If the Note is not paid, foreclosure will occur where you might make a bid. If taxes are not paid, then after a while the County will have a tax sale. This is not a tract... View More
I am looking for something to have in place to help my mom (who lives in TN) with any financial, health and/or legal issues that may arise in the present and in the future when/if she becomes incapacitated.
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answered on Feb 12, 2021
You will need a duradle power of attorney for legal. You may also need a power of attorney for health care.
Uncle passed years ago(10) then grams passes. 3 months ago my stepfather passes(no kids, just me since I was 3) and a few weeks ago my mother passed. My uncle was married with no children. Does my aunt(living in michigan) have any rights to my mom's house?( Only asset in the family) I was... View More
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answered on Feb 11, 2021
Hire a competent attorney in the County where the property is. You need a title search, a determination of heirship (maybe two bloodlines or more), and an Affidavit of Heirship, which will be the Heirs' recorded source of title. Better check the property taxes too, or the Trustee might sell... View More
She passed away with no will, but 1 living parent and that parent wants the house. Is she required to legally evict us through the court. State of TN
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answered on Feb 10, 2021
The Parent will have to file a Detainer Warrant against both of you. The Warrant must be served or posted, heard until a Judgment is rendered, and if you are not out of possession within ten days, get a Writ of Possession executed by the Sheriff.
Always in trouble.my sister and i don't get along. I was told that i can contest the will and get my share. True or not?
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answered on Feb 9, 2021
Anybody can contest a will for any reason. Whether or not they will succeed is a completely different question. For an answer to that question as it pertains to your particular circumstances, you should schedule a personal consultation with an attorney who specializes in will contests. I think... View More
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