Illinois Estate Planning Legal Questions

If you opened a probate of your mothers estate you should not be transferring title to the real estate or distributing estate assets until after the creditor claim period expires. If you did not open a probate of your mothers estate then you are not properly transferring title. If you are not the court appointed executor then you are a stranger to title and do not have proper authority to transfer title. The title insurance company will insure over that risk.... Read More

That is more properly a question for your underwriters, not this forum. Legally, it depends on the legal status of the executor or administrator. The will may give the executor the power to do so. The trust may do so too. But the owner of the property can not be both - it is either the trustee or the executor.... Read More

If she does not have a will, and your father is dead, then the house and her estate would pass to the children. Assuming there were only three children, then to the three. If there had been more children, and those children were dead, but they had children, those grandchildren step into their parent's shoes for the purposes of inheritance.... Read More

Who is I? Is I the spouse? If he is out of state, that state's laws apply, not Illinois. But under Illinois law the spouse would hold that power and right. You presume that the family has told the medical professionals that he is married. Do not presume. If you want the say, you must take affirmative steps to exercise that right.... Read More

Naturally, the best way for everyone to deal with this situation was to have a Power of Attorney created before they were in this position. However, when there is no power of attorney, there can be a lot of conflict with what happens. If a guardian needs to be appointed at this point, it would be a court proceeding. You may recall the case of Teri Schaivo in Florida. The spouse and parents fought for years in court over who was able to make the decision as to whether to end life support. Your best bet would be to talk with someone at the hospital to see what their procedures permit and to an attorney in the state where he is in the hospital.... Read More

Without specific authority granted by the patient, HPPA rules do not allow medical providers to share confidential medical information. A power of attorney for health care (POA) is required to grant authority to make medical decisions. Without a POA or other specific authority you can merely suggest action and no medical provider need to speak to you, though some do seek input from family.... Read More

You are going to have to open a probate estate since I assume the house and her other assets were worth over $100,000. Once you have it open, you can quit claim the deed to the four of you. Unfortunately, I don't think you'll find a way around starting the probate estate. Let me know if you need any assistance.... Read More

You have to transfer title legally. Did Dad have a will? If so, it must be followed and whomever is entitled to the car can then give it to your nephew. If no will, it then passes to the widow, if any, and you and your siblings, if any. Then you can sign over the car to the nephew. Lowering the payments is between the new owner and the lender.... Read More

Was there a probate proceeding? Could someone have had a power of attorney the used while the person was still alive. (I'm assuming the owner has died with your question.) As for the place to call to learn about it, it depends whether the mutual funds were direct or held in a brokerage account. However, even if you can determine the appropriate person to call, you would have to provide them with sufficient proof that you have some legal rights / powers to discuss the account.... Read More

If there is real property involved in an estate or if the value of the estate assets exceed $100,000 the estate must be probated. The Will must be probated before a court. The Judge will review the accounting of estate expenses and order the distribution of estate assets. If the Will has not been submitted to probate it should be and a probate estate should be opened. You should meet with an attorney to review the status of the estate and to open a probate of the Will.... Read More

You are always an heir and entitled to notice of the opening of any estate. You may no longer be a devisee - that is your mother may have changer her will by amendment - called a codicil - and deleted you as a taker under the will. Illinois law provides that a will and codicil are supposed to be filed with the Clerk of the Court of the Country where the person died within 39 days of the death. If that was done, those documents are public record. You can go to the court house and look at them. Whether the change in the will was done properly would take pages to discuss. Look at the Ernie Banks case.... Read More

If he had no children and no will his wife inherits everything. Paying those obligations for your brother may be considered gifts. If you consider them debts and are able to prove satisfactorily to a court, you may be able to open an estate as a creditor and obtain payment through the estate.... Read More

Under Illinois Statute a Will must be signed by the testator or by some person in his presence and by his direction and attested in the presence of the testator by 2 or more credible witnesses. This means that another person may sign the Will on behalf of the paralyzed man (the testator). The witness acknowledgement should acknowledge the circumstances of the signature on the testator's behalf and that the testator had capacity to understand the Will and direct the signing of the Will on his behalf.... Read More

The property is yours. The trust may , in fact, require that the property be distributed to you. You can give one have to your brother, but it is a gift. You are entitled to a lifetime gift tax exclusion on the first 5 million you pass, but a gift tax return declaring that exemption has to be filed by you claiming that exemption. So formally you do not have to pay any time unless you have already used up your lifetime exclusion.... Read More

Your rights in the retirement plan as spouse would have expired with the divorce unless the divorce decree or Property Settlement agreement gave you continuing rights. You should take your Property Settlement Agreement to an attorney for review. The lengthy period of time since your ex-spouse began his retirement presents a problem in your assertion of any rights. The length of time since your ex-spouses death also presents a problem. You may have lost any right to assert a claim due to the passage of time and the statute of limitations. It is important to meet with an attorney without delay to determine if there is any possibility of asserting a claim in light of the passage of time.... Read More

If your husband died 25 years ago, what estate exists. If he had no will , then you would have been entitled to one-half of the estate, and your kids would have divided the other half. But that only applies to assets that would have been in your husband's name alone. Any jointly held assets passed to the joint owner. Any assets on accounts with beneficiaries passed to the beneficiary. What assets remain after 25 years.... Read More

If the father had no Will or Trust the father's estate will be divided amongst the father's wife and children. The share due a predeceased son would be distributed to your children as the descendants of your husband. As the spouse you would not be an heir in an intestate estate. If the father had a Will or Trust then the terms of the document control . If you are named as a legatee you will receive a distribution.... Read More

The ability to sell an ownership interest in a business depends on if there is a restriction on transfers. Is there a buy sell agreement that restricts transfers? Is the business organized as a corporation with transfer restrictions on the stock. Is it a partnership with a partnership agreement that restricts transfers. If there are no transfer restrictions on the ownership interest then you siblings would be free to sell their interest to whomever they choose. You have not provided enough information about the nature of the business and how it is organized to provide you with an answer.... Read More