How Can I Find Bank Accounts in My Parents’ Names After They Die?
Video Summary
How can I find bank accounts that were in my parents’ name after they pass away? Usually, the personal representative goes through their records to see if they can’t find account statements or any evidence of any these accounts in this day and time of electronic accounts and everything being paperless. Then you may wish to go through their computer and hopefully get their password to be able to check their computer to get electronic assets access to these bank accounts, or to be able to identify them. If you don’t have those resources or you can’t do that, or you haven’t identified any and you’re convinced that they had bank accounts or stock accounts, then you can employ a private investigator or an asset research firm to do a nationwide search for assets that were titled in their name, either in a brokerage account or bank accounts or whatever assets they own. Those searches usually run in the neighborhood of about 2,500 to $3,000 or maybe $3,500. If you have any questions, give me a call to (727) 847-2288.
- Published in Estate Planning, Videos
Probate Lawyer Vs Estate Planning Attorney What’s The Difference?
Video Summary
Probate lawyers versus estate Planning lawyers. What is the difference? Well, let’s talk about estate planning. Lawyers first, estate planning lawyers are employed while you’re alive, and they do the planning for whenever you do pass away. They can plan your estate through a trust a will. Most of the time, whenever I speak with my clients, as far as estate planning’s concerned, they wish to try and plan their estate to avoid probate. A probate lawyer is the one that is employed by your executor or trustee to assist in the administration of the estate or the probate proceeding and or the administration of the Trust, so they are employed by your personal representative or heirs. And in order to probate your estate and distribute your assets after the payment of creditors after your death, so one, the estate planning lawyer is employed while you’re alive to plan your estate, the probate lawyer follows the plan and is employed after your death to administer the estate and distribute your assets to your beneficiaries. If you have any questions, give me a call at (727) 847-2288.
How Can I Find a Will?
Video Summary
How can I find a Will? Well, whenever someone passes away, I usually recommend that the children or the personal representative of the decedent go through the records of the decedent to see if they can’t find a copy of the Trust. Hopefully the people did prepare one, but they’re not filed with the clerk of the court. So you look through the records of the decedent to see if you can’t locate the original Will. If there is an original Will, and whoever has it is supposed to file it with the clerk of the court and whatever county the decedent passed away in Florida. And then once it’s filed, it is public record, and anyone can access it by contacting the clerk of the court. Also, if you believe that there is a Will and however the person has not filed a probate proceeding, you can contact an attorney and file what they call a caveat so you’re notified if they in fact file a petition to have the Will admitted to probate. Sometimes, wills are not filed with the court and all the assets are jointly held or all the assets have beneficiaries. If you have any questions, give me a call to (727) 847-2288.
How Can I Obtain a Copy of My Parents’ Trust?
Video Summary
How can I obtain a copy of my parents’ trust? If your parents are still alive, you’re not entitled to their trust, assuming that’s a joint trust, and both of them are beneficiaries of the trust during their lifetime. After they pass away, the successor trustee is supposed to, by Florida statute, give notification to the beneficiaries and if requested, if your beneficiary and request a copy of the trust, that successor trustee would then forward that to you. If you’re not a beneficiary of the trust, you’re not entitled to a copy of the trust. Then there’s a question is as well, how do I know if I’m a beneficiary or not, or if the trustee isn’t speaking to me That does present a problem, and I don’t have a very good solution for you. If you have any questions, give me a call to (727) 847-2288.
What Does “Per Stirpes” Mean in Estate Planning?
Video Summary
What does per stirpes or per stirps mean in an estate planning document? That means that you are leaving everything to, let’s say, a child. However, if they pass away upon prior to you, you wish it to go to their children or for that matter, any beneficiary that you leave your assets to. It’s usually used whenever you have several beneficiaries and you state that you leave it to three beneficiaries and equal shares per stirpes, which is Latin, which means that if any one of them would die before you, that their share would be distributed to their children or their heirs. If you have any questions, give me a call at (727) 847-2288.
- Published in Estate Planning, Videos