Pennsylvania Probate Legal Questions

Your mother's debts are now her estate's debts.  They are not yours personally.  Funeral expenses have first priority so you can pay those out of her policy.  It sounds like her only asset was the car, and that may not cover her medical bills and credit card debt.  I would contact these creditors and let them know that her estate has no assets.  They may just write off the debt.  Most states have a small amount of estate assets that are deemed "exempt property" and so not liable to creditors for debts.  In Maine, this amount is $7,000; it looks like it is $10,000 in PA for bank accounts but I don't know if personal property is treated differently there.  My guess is that if the car is worth less than $10,000, you should be able to sell it and keep that amount to be distributed between you and your brother, but I am not sure about that.  I do know that creditors are used to estates that have no funds, so you may have the easiest time just contacting them and telling them the situation.  Worst case scenario is that you sell the car, provide the creditors with the amount received, and divide it between them in accordance with the amount your mother owed.  In any case, you are not personally responsible for any of her debts and should not pay them out of your own funds. ... Read More

That's a difficult situation.  I'm guessing that the house was in both of your mother and your father's names as joint owners, so it became his when your mother passed away.  Your mother could have altered this form of ownership while she was living, but it cannot be altered now.  I'm also guessing that your father is receiving Medicaid assistance for his nursing home care and the state has learned that he has this house as an asset and so wants to force a sale and use the funds toward his care.  I would advise meeting with an attorney to pursue filing a claim of unjust enrichment against your father, claiming that you contributed a certain amount of funds toward the house (mortgage, repairs, etc.) and seeking compensation from him since he is now the owner.  YOu will need documentation of your contributions, and, if you have lived in the house, you may face a defense that these payments were like rental payments or even gifts to your mother.  Then again, if your father is in a nursing home, it is not clear who would defend against this lawsuit on his behalf.  Maybe you would end up negotiating some sort of settlement with the state Medicaid program division.  There also may be another legal cause of action available to you in PA, such as pursuing child support if there was an order for your father to pay and he did not do so. ... Read More

Your will is offered for probate in the state where you were last domiciled.  You cannot dictate the state of probate by putting a provision to that affect in your will.  The location of your beneficiaries has no bearing at all on where your will is offered for probate.  I don't know what the laws of California are concerning the definition of marital assets for purposes of equitable distribution in a divorce.  If CA is like PA, assets acquired after separation are not considered marital assets.  In that event, if your son were to inherit from you, it should not have a direct impact on his divorce.... Read More

I am sorry to hear of your tragic loss.  If they had no will, then their remaning assets would pass via the laws of intestate succession.  If they had no children, then their assets would pass to their respective parents.  There may be some difficulty in determining how assets pass if you do not know which of them passed away first -- and I apologize for the gruesome thought.  You or their estate may also have a claim that you can raise arising out of their deaths if the fire was the result of some person or company.  I encourage you to contact a Pennsylvania attorney as soon as possible. ... Read More

Yes.  I do not recommend writing on your existing Will but rather writing a new one.  You also could write a "codicil" to your existing Will, which states which parts you want to change and otherwise affirms the old Will.  But writing a new one is usually easier.  Be sure to sign it in front of two witnesses, and then have them sign it too.  Even better, have a notary sign it with you and the two witnesses. ... Read More

Did your parents have assets that require Probate to pass to their heirs?  Probate would begin with filing a Petition with your local clerk of courts to have someone appointed as the personal representative of the estate.  Your parents would have named someone to serve in that role in their Wills.  If they did not have wills, then the state would dictate who could serve, typcially it would be their surviving children who are first in line to serve in that capacity.... Read More

I'm assuming the will was probated.  Maybe the best way to explain this is to run through some typical deadlines.  The first is 90 days after death.  If you make an estimate payment of inheritance tax, you get a 5% discount off the full inheritance tax ultimately payable.  The next deadline is 9 months from death.  That's when the inheritance tax return is due to be filed and full amount of tax paid.  Typically estate administration is not formally closed until the department of revenue reviews the return and issues a notice of its acceptance or any required changes.  That can take up to 6 months or more after the return is filed. So if the return was filed at the 9 month mark, you could take you into September 2016.  If the estate was advertized, creditors have one year from that date to file claims.  February 2017 seems to be outside the normal time frame to administer an estate that you described -- assuming there were no problems.  ... Read More

ON their first of you to pass away, if everything is owned jointly or controlled by a beneficiary designation (for example an IRA or 401(k)), then probate is unlikely.  I say unlikely because in my experience it is not uncommon for folks to think everything is jointly owned but in reality they've forgotten something . On the second of you to die, the need for probate will be determined based upon the type and titling of assets.  Avoiding probate should not be considered the sole justification for titiling your assets jointly with someone.  There are many implications that come with jointly titled assets.  In addition, I would highly recommend that you not rely upon titling assets and forgoe having a will done.  A will, durable general power of attorney and healthcare power of attorney are three documents that are a "must have" for you. ... Read More

the situation that you present is not uncommon.  I assume your sibling is the properly appointed administrator of the Estate.  The Administrator has the authority to sell assets of the Estate, including real estate.  However the Administrator's administration of the Estate and sale of assets is subject to the oversight of the Oprhan's Court.  the Administrator has a duty to carry out his/her duty in the best interests of the beneficiaries.  That means selling the house at a fair price.  Typically an Administrator who thinks beneficiaries will not agree on a sale will seek the court's permission to sell and in doing so give everyone a chance to review the terms of the proposed sale and raise objections. Sounds like that didn't happen here.  If the house hasn't sold yet, you might consider retaining counsel to initiate a proceeding to prevent the sale without court approval.  If the house has been sold, you can object to the Administrator's handling of the estate and ask the court to "charge" the Administrator for any actions that ended up resulting in a detriment to you.... Read More

I'm not sure I'm following.  Here's how I'm reading it:  your granmother passed away and was survived by your father.  Your father passed away some time after your granmother.  he had a will and left his estate to his current spouse.  Is that correct?  If so, the only contest here would be to your father's will.  The contest would have to be based upon an allegation that he was unable to prepare a will due to some impairment that adversely impacted his ability to understand what he was doing when he created the will.  If he had no such impairment, then there would be no valid basis to contest the will based upon his decisions about to whom to leave his estate.... Read More

I think your question is one of priority.  Which will dictate the disposition of real estate, the will or the deed.  if the deed is titled in the name of two or more persons with rights of survivorship, the deed will dictate the disposition of the decedent's interest in the property regardless of the contents of the will.  if the deed is titled to one person or if in the case of multiple owners the deed is silent on survivorship rights, then the will dictates disposition of the property at the time of the decedent's passing.  Best bet -- have an attorney review the deed to give you a specific opinion. ... Read More

If you made loans to family members (not the decedent) then your claims for repayment are agains them directly, not the estate.  If you loaned money to the decedent, you can file a written claim against the estate within one year of the date the estate was opened for probate.  Has the will been offered for probate?  Do you think the will is defective in some way? ... Read More

I'm sorry to hear about your sister's passing. Sometimes the death of a family member increases the urgency to get our own affairs in order.  My firm has completed 17,000 wills over the last 10 years.  We'd be happy to help you.  Even if you don't call us, its a very wise idea for you to retain an attorney to get your estate plan in order. ... Read More

Have you asked this question of his pension administrator?  Generally whatever elections he makes for a beneficiary on his pension are "locked in" as of the time he started receiving his pension benefits.  I doubt that his surviving children have a claim to any of his pension benefits at this point unless they were named specifically as beneficiaries. ... Read More

It really depends on what medicaid benefits you're applying for.  If its for medical assistance for medical bills, then she has a very low amount of assets she can have in her name.  If you are aplying for long term care medical assistance only (to pay for skilled nursing care), then property owned by your mother that is her residence will not factor into eligibility.... Read More

So I take it that you are preparing Wills for yourselves, correct?  That's an excellent idea.  Over half of Americans do not have a Will.  You can name any competent adult to serve as the personal representaive of your estate.  I typiclaly do not suggest having "co-exectors".  There are too many practical problems when you have more than one chef in a kitchen.  Please retain an estate planning attorney to help you with your Wills.  There are many traps for the inexperienced. ... Read More

I'm sorry to hear about your father's death.  I suspect what is happening here is that your father had a contract with the VA home requiring him to pay for his residence there.  That obligation does not go away upon his death.  His obligations become those of his estate. Can you fight this -- maybe.  It depends on the procedural posture of the collection matter -- how far along is it?  Have you raised an estate for your father?  If so, you might require the VA to file a claim with the estate and then you can litigate the claim within the probate proceeding.  the VA would have to fall in the line of priority of who gets paid from an estate. There may be a way for you to shield some of your father's assets from this claim but I would suggest that you get all of the details to an attorney as soon as possible.  It sounds like things are urgent.  Once the VA gets the money in the account, it'll be difficult and costly to recover it. ... Read More

Unless he has a lease or is on the deed, he has no "right" to continue residing in the house.  The house is likely an asset of the estate.  he should be paying rent to the estate.  You might consider retaining counsel to represent your interest in the estate and to get things moving along for you. ... Read More

If the property was specifically devised under the will and the will was probated, title has actually transferred and it's unnecessary to have a deed to that effect.  A court decree approving a proposed distribution of the estate can also act to pass title without a deed.  If those are absent, you can file a petition for a rule to show cause why the executrix shouldn't conclude the administration of the estate, including making complete distribution of the estate assets.  Probably a call or letter from an attorney would get things moving along.   ... Read More

I'm sorry to hear about your sister's passing.  People do change their minds regarding the disposition of their assets at death.  If she left everything to her spouse, that would not be considered unusual.  You'd have to prove that your sister has insufficient mental capacity to understand what she was doing when she executed her last will.  That's a really tough thing to do becasue under PA law, the necessary capacity in order to prepare a valid will is a relatively low bar.  Estate proceedings can be time consuming, costly and emotionally costly.  Unless there's a great deal of money at stake, you may not want to attempt to face these hurdles. ... Read More

If there is estate property to pass, whoever is listed as executor in his will, must file the will. Look and see if this happens. If there is a will it will determine who your father's probate property passes to. If there is no will, his property will pass in accordance with the PA intestate statute which, in your case, children will share with the wife. If you feel he was incompetent when he did the POA and will, or he did them under duress or coercion of the new wife, you can challenge by A) contesting the will and B) filing a petition for accounting of POA funds with the court. You will need a lawyer to do both of these. You should really talk to a lawyer about this. ... Read More

Estate planning for second marriages with children are always difficult. I am not understanding how you describe the will here. Do each of you inherit from each other, then the various children inherit from the survivor?  I am assuming that is the case but not sure the way you state this question. If that is the case, when he dies, yes, you can change your will and leave everything to your children or whoever you wish. ... Read More