Utah Estate Planning Legal Questions

If your mother-in-law is still alive, she may be able to grant you a deed transferring the property on her death subject to the reverse mortgage.  If not, there may be a way for you to be reimbursed for the many payments you have made.  Contact an elder lawyer.  You can find one near you on the website of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (www.naela.org)... Read More

If the Durable [Financial] Power of Attorney did not name a successor agent to your uncle, no one but your grandmother can handle her finances.  There is an exception:  if she is unable to manage her financial affairs or provide for her food, shelter and medical care, someone can apply to a court to place her under guardianship. If your grandmother has a Medical Power of Attorney, the agent she appointed in that document can speak.  If not, your state likely has rules on who can speak for her. Someone who is named as executor in a Will has no authority to act until a court appoints her.  A Will cannot be submitted to a court for probate (proving) until the person who made the Will is dead.  ... Read More

I only have experience with the trust issues, not with the VA benefits. My first question is why are you putting the house into a trust? In what way are you saving taxes on the sale when compared to the expense of setting up a trust? I just don't see creating a trust to simply sell the house. Is there something else going on? You may want to review the entire project with another counsel.... Read More

Under the intestacy statutes in Utah, when there is a second marriage,, the surviving spouse gets the first $75,000.00 of the estate. The balance si divided equally between the surviving spouse, who gets 1/2, and the children from the first marriage, who divide up the other 1/2. Realistically, if the estate is not large enough, you could all be disinherited.... Read More

If your father put your step-mother's name on the deeds to any real estate, the will is not controlling anyway. The will controls any property which must go through probate. If your father and step-mother owned the real estate as joint tenants, which is most common for married couples, the real estate is not part of the probate estate, and the will does not govern it anyway. If the titling was not as joint tenants, then probate would be necessary and the will be useful. However, if there is no will, step-mom gets only the first $75000, plus one-half of what's left. The other half wold go to you and any siblings.... Read More

Under Utah intestacy laws (meaning no will),in a step-parent situation, the surviving spouse is entitled to the first $75000, ,plus one-half of the remainder of the estate. If the estate is less than $75000, your step-dad is correct, he gets it all. However, if the estate is more than $75000, you and your siblings get one-half of what's left.... Read More

First off, you are asking about Wyoming law. I am not licensed in Wyoming. Is there any particular reason why you want to set things up in Wyoming? Second, putting everything into one entity does not protect everything because, if the entity is sued, then everything in that entity is subject to any liability in that suit. Third, the LLC would have to be run as some sort of business, with all of the appropriate filings and meetings. If not strictly complied with, a creditor could attempt to pierce the corporate veil and go after assets. You really need to work with someone to fully review your assets and risks. Then work to figure out the best options available.... Read More

Your mother's estate is responsible for her debts, not you. This means that you need to use her estate to pay off er debts, but if there is not enough to pay all of them off, you just need to negotiate with her creditors and pay what you can. What can't be paid for out of her estate does not get paid. If you keep the car, you can just keep making the payments until your credit is better, and I doubt the lender will say anything. If you do not change the title of the car to your name, and get pulled over, you can be charged with improper registration, so I would change the title as soon as possible.... Read More

She needs to petition to have the executor removed and replaced. The will does not give the executor to basically set up a trust, and she can file a petition to replace the executor with the someone who will adhere to the will. If the estate is intestate because the will is not valid, she can still petition to replace the executor.... Read More

Your Trustee needs to be careful and speak with a medicaid planning attorney before she sells the house. The consequences may be severe. As long as the grandmother has an intent to return to the home, the home is an exempt asset, and Medicaid cannot take the home. If your grandmother moves back into the home before she dies, even if only for 1 day, it wipes out the lien Medicaid has on the home. If your sister sells the home, the proceeds are not exempt, and must be spent down before Medicaid will begin helping with any nursing home expenses. If your sister still insists on selling the home, she has that right, and you will have to move out. As Trustee, she can manage the assets any way she wants, so long as the trust assets are used for your grandmother.... Read More

It is too late to probate the will since more than 3 years have passed. But you can file a petition for declaration of heirs that will solve this problem and allow the title company to accept the heirs as the selling parties to convey title. This does require a court hearing, but is no more expensive than a probate. If the property is held in joint tenancy, one parent can be removed from title by filing a death certificate and affidavit with the county recorder. The petition for declaration of heirs then deals only with the last parent to die.... Read More

If she has already been appointed by the court as personal representative, and still has not done anything to get the house sold or rented out, or if she is living in the house, you need to file a motion to have her removed as personal representative. You do not necessarily need to have an attorney prepare the motion. You can act pro se (as your own attorney), and send to the court a letter asking that she be removed. State why you want her removed, and that you be appointed instead of her. Be sure to send a copy to your sister. The court should then schedule some kind of hearing where you can present to the court what has been going on for two years, and hwy your sister should be removed. You may be able to find an attorney who will take the case for a reduced fee, or wait for fees until after the house is sold.... Read More

You need to contact the office of adult protective services, or the county attorney's office, in the county where your mother resided at the time she died. This really smacks of elder abuse, which is a crime in Utah. If the County' will not investigate, you have grounds to sue and try to get the transfers set aside.... Read More