QUESTION
Can I give money away from an estate to someone not listed in the will?
Asked on Apr 21st, 2015 on Wills and Probate - California
More details to this question:
My father's estate is in probate. I am the sole beneficiary listed in his will and I am the appointed executor. I would like to give my dad's other daughter half of the cash in his estate but not his vehicles or personal property. The will he had was very vague and didn't list anything specifically it just states "My estate is to be divided equally among listed children" (which is only me). Can I list her in the final distribution as receiving half his cash? Or would I have to take it all then gift her half?
1 ANSWER
There are a couple of ways you could handle that. You could do a distribution agreement with the other daughter. That would show exactly who is getting what and that there are no other claims by her. The court would then approve it. Another option is to ask the court for instructions but I would only do that if the other daughter won't sign a distribution agreement. I would work with your probate attorney on this as there are some technical pitfalls here. -John
Answered on Apr 22nd, 2015 at 3:21 PM