Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in California
My father passed away almost two months ago. He had a very small estate that is not going through probate. My sister is listed as the beneficiary on his life insurance. Are we supposed to go through the courts for any reason or is everything supposed to be done between the two of us? We are the only heirs. He also had a bank account, two vehicles, a pension (with no beneficiary) and other personal belongings. I feel as though my sister is leaving me out of a lot of what is happening with his affairs and she is acting as if she is the executor of his estate. What can I do?
1 Answer from Attorneys
You could petition the probate court to be appointed as the administrator to make sure it's done fairly. Otherwise, you might want to have a sit-down with your sister, no matter how difficult, and try to work things out. Perhaps have a trusted mutual friend to act as a go-between or mediator to try to calm raw nerves.
If the estate is worth less than $100,000 and includes no real property, then probate is probably unnecessary. If it's more than the statutory period, assets may be rounded up through use of an affidavit to which is attached a copy of the death certificate, sent to those who might have his assets. The pension payout would be made payable to the estate. The life insurance benefit is your sister's alone, as she was named the beneficiary.
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