It is happening with more and more frequency…someone knocks on the door and announces him or her self as the child of the man answering the door. DNA and the rise of Ancestry.com and the like have created this potentially awkward moment over and over again. In many cases it is a beautiful moment. I
Probate
The Role of the Probate Lawyer
By Grady Dickens on
The legal role of the probate lawyer is to admit the decedent’s will to probate, advise the newly appointed executor on their responsibilities and duties, help the executor inventory all of the assets of the decedent’s estate, settle debts and distribute the assets to the beneficiaries named in the will. Of course, numerous legal issues…
Probate on the First Death…Do it
By Grady Dickens on
Posted in Probate
Many times I have the family of the second spouse contact me regarding probate of his or her estate. As I discuss the matter I learn that the first spouse died years earlier, and, since everything passed to the second spouse, no probate was done for the first spouse.
While this isn’t an insurmountable problem,…
What is Ancillary Probate and How to Avoid It
By Grady Dickens on
If you own real property outside of your state of residence when you die, you will have to conduct an ancillary probate in that state to transfer title to the property to your beneficiaries. In some states, like Texas, ancillary probate is a simple process of recording copies of the out of state probate in…
To Live With a Trust or Die with a Will
By Grady Dickens on
The probate question I get asked the most often is whether a client should use a living trust to avoid probate. In many states the answer is an unqualified “yes.” In Texas, the answer is “it depends, but probably not.”
A living trust is a revocable trust to which the client will transfer his or…
Purgatory-The Crucial Time Between Date of Death and Appointment of Executor
By Grady Dickens on
A colleague of mine, who was named as executor under the will, is faced with the not uncommon circumstance of managing the two children heirs who don’t like each other. He can’t yet act for the estate, but there is the real possibility that things could escalate into an ugly and unfortunate situation. In these…