My grandpa died about 3 years ago. My mom remembers my grandpa talking about going to get his will done, but that was several years before he passed away. My grandma said he didn't have a will and everything was hers. My grandpa worked VERY hard for his money and very hard to keep it AWAY from my grandma. He had seperate accounts from her and everything. He was very tight with his money, she is just the opposite and was 10s of thousands of dollars in debt.
If my grandpa did indeed get a will made up, would the family have automatically have been notified that there was a will, or would we have had to inquire about one to find out? (Not that it matters, as my grandma blew the $100K he had in savings less than a year after he died.)
2006-07-08 15:45:24 · 9 answers · asked by amylynn25 3 in Politics & Government ➔ Law & Ethics
How would the lawyer have known he died? (Not trying to be a smart alek)
2006-07-08 15:49:57 · update #1
I think it varies by state. The executor of the will should notifiy the family about a will, assuming the executor knows about it. Check with the local States Attorney's office for information on Probate. If you know his bank you should ask them if he had a security deposit box where he may have had a will stored. You might also check with the attorney and the insurance agent he dealt with.
If you really think he had a will and it is being ignored, go talk to a lawyer and/or detective who can look into it for you.
2006-07-08 15:55:41 · answer #1 · answered by Wyld Stallyns 4 · 3⤊ 0⤋
no, there is no automatic way to notify anyone. He would have made the will with his attorney, and he would have a copy and his attorney would have a copy. That is it, unless someone called his attorney and asked if there was a will, that would be it.
Depending on the state, his wife would have to have been left a certain part of the estate ( could not write her out normally)
If her name was not on the bank accounts after his death, his widow would have had to go to probate court to get the money.
But I am sure 1000's of wills are merely thrown out by various family members since no one asks about them.
2006-07-08 22:50:47 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Your grandfather may have verbally said he had a will prepared; but, if that will cannot be confrmed as having been filed with the county or state your grandfather lived in, there is little evidence the will was a legal document. Most states allow the surviving spouse to inherit ALL property owned by the deceased.
2006-07-08 23:33:45 · answer #3 · answered by Baby Poots 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
That's really a shame that she did that. If he had a will, it should be a matter of public record and you may be able to find it thru the probate court in the county where he lived. If he did make the will, she would not have been notified unless she was mentioned in it.
2006-07-08 22:49:19 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
If you sincerely want to pursue this, you need to bring grandma to probate court. If you have a will it should be ran through probate, if your grandpa died intestate (w/o a will) then grandma may be right, so get you an estate planning attorney and get with it.
2006-07-08 22:50:56 · answer #5 · answered by aj1908 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If the will was held by a Lawyer, and they know of your Grandpa's death, they would have contacted the family, but it is possible that it is held somewhere else (e.g. in a safe deposit box)
2006-07-08 22:49:35 · answer #6 · answered by Peedah 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes his lawyer would have notified family if he had a will and if
they were in it. However I'm sure that if he did, your grandfather
would have told your family.
2006-07-08 22:49:12 · answer #7 · answered by retrodragonfly 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's automatic. The lawyer would have sent you a letter.
2006-07-08 22:48:47 · answer #8 · answered by normobrian 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
yes the next of kin, is always notified
2006-07-08 22:53:33 · answer #9 · answered by futurehero5200 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋