New Jersey Probate Legal Questions

Probate only means to prove or validate the will.  What you do after that is up to you.  If you have the original will and the original death certificate, go to the county probate clerk in the county in which your mother lived at the time of her death.  They will assist you with probating the will. it is VERY easy and you will not require an attorney for proabte.  After you have admitted the will to probate, you will have to administer the estate - that will involve locating and liquidating assets, paying final bills, etc.  If you need assistance with all of that, please call my office.... Read More

If there are a lot of beneficiaries, I always wait until I get all of the release and refunding bonds back before I distribute.  If one person disagrees, it could throw the whole estate off, and require a lot of expenses that would reduce the overall distribution to everyone else.  It is much better to wait, and be sure that everyone will sign and is not going to challenge the distribution, than to make a distribution and then have to ask to have it returned.  ... Read More

Your first step would be to be certain the will was admitted to probate.  Call the county probate clerk in the county where your grandmother lived and ask if her will was probated.  If it was, the executor has to notify you.  You should send a certified letter to the executor asking for a copy of the will, and if the executor still does not respond, you may need to hire and attorney to file a petition with the court to force the executor to do it properly.  ... Read More

I usually try to resolve things within 9 months.  that's not a requirement, but if inheritance taxes are due, they are due 9 months after the date of death, so I use that as a guide.  sometimes more complicated estates take longer, but certainly not 4 years.  You could start an inquiry by asking the attorney for an informal accounting of what is in the estate.... Read More

I'm not sure from what you wrote whose will was changed.  If your mother hcanged her own will, she has the right to do that.  If you are saying your sister changed your mother's will, that's a different story.  You would have to prove what your sister did, that she unduly influenced your mother, or forced her to change the will.  But none of this can be done until your mother passes away.  If she has already, you can file a challenge againt the will.... Read More

You would have to document your mother's mental condition.  A mild case of dementia is not necessarily going to prevent her from redoing her will.  She must know the "objects of her affection and the nature of her bounty" which means she has to know what assets she has and to whom she wants to leave them.  Even if she has some confusion or other issues, she might be lucid enough to do a will.  That would be a very fact specific decision. ... Read More

I'm not sure what the question is basedon what you are saying.  If your question is can his widow take over for your job, the answer is yes, she can.  You could renounce or give up your right to serve as executor in favor of her.  Then she could deal with the case with the cousin.  ... Read More

You can do a holographic will.  Write the will out in your own handwriting.  Include a statement that you intend this document to be your last will and testament and to dipose of all of your possessions.  The most inportant part is that you sign the will in ffront of two witnesses, and that a Notary Public is also present.  The Notary has to sign, and a statement saying that the Notary attests to the fact that the two witnesses were present has to be included.  ... Read More

There is no "duty" fo rthe executor's attorney to return your calls.  Does the will require an acocunting? if it does you can make a demand to the court for an accounting.  I would start with writing a certified letter to your sister, and to the attorney demanding that you be advised of the status.  Keep the receipt for the letter so you can later prove you sent it.  Ask the surrogate court in the county in which your mother lived for a copy of the file so that you can see what assets were listed, or if an inventory was provided.  If your mother lived in Monmouth or Ocean Counties, call my office maybe I can help.  ... Read More

You could try doing that, and ask the court to make your the adminisntrator.  you should not indicate that you know there is a will, but that you don't know whether there is or not, and that no one will produce it.  If you know there is a will, you should not indicate to the surrogate's office that there is no will.  If you know any lawyers that the decedent dealt with, you can try calling them to see if a will was prepared. ... Read More

Probably not a legal right, but you might be able to get some ashes anyway.  this is not something you want to do yourself.  find out where she lives.  Find a funeral home close by and explain the problem.  Ask them if they can help facilitate a division of the ashes.  Ask her to bring the ashes to the funeral home and tell her you will pay the cost of getting the ashes divided into a small container for you.  If she does not agree to that, you might have to hire a lawyer to get it from her. ... Read More

i'm not sure why you want/need the other birth certificate.  Mom could always change her name to be the name she uses, and then have a court order with the "correct" name.  If the mid-wife is no longer around, you might be able to apply to the court in Puerto Rico for a corrected birth certificate, but in the long run it might just be easier to have your mom do a name change.... Read More

you should first get a copy of the will and make sure that it was admitted to prbate in the county in which the decedent lived.  If it is Monmouth or Ocean Counties in New Jersey, I can help you with that.  You can demand an accoutning of the estate, and if time deadlines have passed for the executor to tae action and he/she has not done what is required, the executor can be removed. ... Read More

It is posible that the attorney is waiting for confirmation from the State of new JErsey that no estate taxes are due.  However, based on the information you provided it is impossible to be sure.  Call the attorney handling the estate and ask why the checks cannot be released. ... Read More

Call the Surrogate's Office of the county in which the will was admitted to probate.  Get a copy of the probate file to see what documents are on file.  If the will requires an accounting be provided, write to your brother and demand and accounting.  He can be removed as the executor and someone else can be appointed to determine what happened to the estate assets.  If you live in Ocean or Monmouth counties feel free to give me a call and we can discuss this.... Read More

You are a class A beneficiary and a direct lineal descendant, so you will not pay inheritance tax.  If the total value of your mom's estate is over $675,000 the estate may be liable for estate tax. You will not be taxed on any amount that you receive from the trust as income tax.  The trust is revocable, then you can revoke the trust at any time and get the entire amount paid to you.  If the will contains a provision that states a specific amount was to go to you in a trust, then you are a specific bequest beneficiary, not a residuary beneficiary.  The residuary beneficiaries are the ones that get the rest (or residue) of the estate after all of the expenses, taxes, and specific bequests are paid. ... Read More

New Jersey does not have a legal requirement to turn over a will.  Many states have a law that penalizes someone for destroying a will, but NJ does not have such a law.  The will would have to be registered in the county in which your father lived.  If your father ever dealt with an attorney for any reason, you might try contacting that attorney's office to see if they have done a will for your father - if he bought a house, for example, he might have gone back to the attorney that did the closing.  Even if she rips up the will, then your father died instestate or without a will, and then you and your siblings may still be entitled to a portion of the estate.... Read More

You actually do not need to have a lawyer help you with probate if the will are self proving.  Look on the last page of the will.  If the will was witnessed by two people who are not beneficiaries, and there is a clause indicating a notary attests to the signatures of the witnesses, and if you have the original will, you can go to the county in which the decedent lived, and probate the will yourself.  It i no more difficult than getting a driver's license.  If there are problems with the will, or you do not have the original, then you will need to speak to an attorney in the county in which the will is to be probated.... Read More