It is perfectly acceptable to draft one’s will. But only an attorney can legally draft a will for you. Be advised that personally drafted wills are often incomplete and therefore some or all of such a will can be held as invalid under state laws. Many kits are available that are often non state-specific from …
A state law could possibly require this, but generally this is a movie scenario and not done in real life. Usually, the personal representative of the estate provides notice of probate to all interested parties and they can obtain a copy of the will from the probate court if desired. Often, enough copies of the …
Creditors are notified of the death as part of the probate process. This notification process can vary from state-to-state and can range from a letter to each creditor to a blanket notice to all creditors published in the local newspaper. Once this filing or notification has occurred, creditors have a fixed period of time (defined …
Often they are, but a court is not bound by these provisions and might overrule them if there was a specific reason to do so or a justifiable challenge to the guardianship was offered by another family member or interested party. It is also possible that a different guardian would be appointed if a designated …
Joint tenancy with right of survivorship (JTWROS) is a common legal method of defining property ownership when shared with another person, but it doesn’t replace a will. Typical, this “survivor” is a spouse, but can apply to other relationships. If one of the owners dies, the other becomes the sole owner of the property. This …
Usually, the laws of the state in which the deceased was last a permanent resident prevail regarding governance of probate issues – covering all of the deceased’s personal property, wherever it was located, and all the deceased’s real property located within the state. Therefore, probate almost always filed in the last state where the deceased person …
What Happens When The Person Who Dies Owned Land In Multiple States? Read More »
Creditors are notified of the death as part of the probate process. This notification process can vary from state-to-state and can range from a letter to each creditor to a blanket notice to all creditors published in the local newspaper. Once this filing or notification has occurred, creditors have a fixed period of time (defined …
The main tasks of a Personal Representative are to: (1) determine if there are any probate assets; (2) identify, gather, and inventory the assets of the deceased; (3) receive payments due the estate, including interest, dividends, and other income (e.g., unpaid salary, vacation pay, and other company benefits); (4) set up a checking account for …
What are the main duties of a personal representative? Read More »
