New Jersey Estate Litigation Legal Questions

This is a very complicated issue.  Your brother, as the trustee is supposed to do what is in mom's best interest.  If that is living with him, then that's fine, but he should be preserving her assets.  If he is going to use mom's money to buy a bigger house, then he should be a joint owner with the trust, to keep mom's money segregated from his. However, the difficulties will arise when mom dies, and then you become a beneficiary of the trust, and therefore own a portion of his house.  EVeryone in this situation should proceed with caution as he is going down a path that could lead to the parties that are involved being treated inequitably. ... Read More

The estate must be settled within 9 months of the date of death.  There really isn't any "normal" time and  is very dependent on the state of the decedent's financial affairs.  I have settled estates of several million dollars within the 9 month period because the decedent was very organized, but yet its taken me 2 years to settle and estate with nothing in it because the decedent was a hoarder and it took forever to track things down.  The 9 month range is a good start because that is the tax filing requirement.  ... Read More

You can make application to the court to have the executor removed, or demand an accounting that the attorney will have to comply with.   If you have communicated with the attorney, and there is no reason why the assets cannot be distributed, you should file with the probate court get the person removed. ... Read More

It depends on the community.  Some will allow the house to stay in the name of the estate.  Some will not.  If you are married, and you spouse is age 55, they will allow you to put both names on the property.  i think the main concern is children under the age of 18 living in the house.  Some of the communities in Ocean county have waved the requirements because of the need for housing after the hurricane.  You should check with the homeowner's association of the community.... Read More

The commission statute is the following: 3B:18-14. Corpus commissions  Commissions on all corpus received by the fiduciary may be taken as follows: 5% on the first $200,000 of all corpus received by the fiduciary; 3.5% on the excess over $200,000 up to $1,000,000; 2% on the excess over $1,000,000;  and 1% of all corpus for each additional fiduciary provided that no one fiduciary shall be entitled to any greater commission than that which would be allowed if there were but one fiduciary involved.  ... Read More

I' am not sure based on what you wrote if you already own 1/3 of the house, and will be inheriting more or all of the house.  If you already own 1/3 of the house, then you have a legal right to stay there.  If you are inheriting the house is an estate asset.  Technically you will owe rent to the estate, but you should have the right to buy out your sisters share of the house if any.  A lot is going to depend on what you own now, and what you will be inheriting. ... Read More

There is not enough information to answer this question. If you are an Executor and you have to provide notice of probate, then you should send the documents by certified mail.  If you are serving a complaint, then you will also need to provide the court with proof that you served the complaint. ... Read More

You don't need a New Jersey estate lawyer at all.  You only need someone who practices in Pennsylvania. There are a number of different research tools available to find an attorney, including this website.  Just look for someone who practices in the county in which the will you are talking about was probated.  Preferably you would ge a Certified Elder Law Attorney, known as a CELA.  Good Luck.  ... Read More

You need to file some type of motion in the court in the state in which the estate was probated.  In New Jersey that would be a motion to enforce litigant's rights.   you need to also send something to the attorney appointed to represent the estate asking for an accounting, and a distribution from the estate.  If there is a judgment against your sister, that judgment will have to be made enforceable in North Carolina so that you can recoup some of the money she took from the estate.... Read More

Commissions on all corpus received by the fiduciary may be taken as follows: 5% on the first $200,000 of all corpus received by the fiduciary; 3.5% on the excess over $200,000 up to $1,000,000; 2% on the excess over $1,000,000;  and 1% of all corpus for each additional fiduciary provided that no one fiduciary shall be entitled to any greater commission than that which would be allowed if there were but one fiduciary involved.... Read More

I am not sure from the information you have provided what your question is.  If you feel you are the victim of elderly abuse, go to your local police department and report it.  You can also seek help from the office of Adult Protective Services in the county in which you live.  If you provide more information, I might be able to provide more specific advice.    ... Read More

I think this is the same question as above.  find out if your father knows your sister is selling the house.  Is your father living in the house?  Do they need money to continue to provide your father care?  If you would like to discuss this issue, please feel free to call my office.... Read More

Its hard to determine whether or not the attorney knows what he is doing, but one thing definitely raises suspicion.  Most people do the kind of trust you are talking about in order to avoid having to probate and get an administrator or executor appointed, for exactly the purpose you mentioned, avoiding the tax.  If you are not happy with the attorney - call around and get a new one.  Have a consultation to see if another attorney might be better able to help you.  One suggestion is to look at the website of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys and look for a Certified Elder Law Attorney.  That is a special certification that is recognized by the American Bar Association and indicates people who have specific knowledge in this are of practice. ... Read More

There are a lot of questions in here.  Let me try to address them.  The monies that you paid on the house are considered estate expenses, and should be paid by the estate, meaning any of the other assets owned by your sister.  You owe Inheritance Tax because of your relationship to the decedent - you are siblings - and therefore owe tax.  You are owed money as a reimbursement of what you paid, and you owe money for taxes.  It would seem that you should get credit for what you paid. That reconciliation should be done by the attorney.  Next, I'm not sure i agree with the position about the insurance. If your sister had life insurance policies and did not name a beneficiary, then those policies become part of the estate, and the money used to pay estate debts (like the expenses owed to you) and the rest distributed to the siblings.  Good luck.  Please call my office if I can be of any further assistance.... Read More

Yes, unfortunately there is.  There is a law that requires that those fees be paid, and a lot of people use it to their advantage to make trouble where they should just leave the estate alone. Rule 4:42-9(a)(3) allows the court to award attorneys' fees “in probate actions.” That Court Rule would allow someone who is challenging the will or asking to be the executor to have their fees paid from the estate.... Read More

It can be something that is taken into consideration, anything can be in a negotiation.  Also, you can consider the additional carrying charges (taxes, utilities, etc.) that would be incurred while the property is on the market, and any repairs that would be essential for the property to go to a new owner. ... Read More