Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in California

Re: Probate

It certainly sounds like a good time to get an attorney to enforce your rights. Having your own attorney would give you some protection to make sure your sister is doing things correctly and if she is not get her removed as Executor as soon as possible. I would look for one who is a certified specialist in probate law. Feel free to contact me if you would like to discuss your case further. -John

Re: Probate

Is the one sister not being told much because very little is happening? If the estate is worth more than $100,000 then it must go through probate and the court will appoint someone to be the administrator of the estate. Either sister can object to the other; if the first sister has not filed for probate the second sister can file and ask that she be appointed. If neither appears competent and each opposes the other, the court likely will appoint someone off its list of administrators, which results in that person being entitled to a percentage fee of the amount of the estate and control over the estate. It is better if that can be avoided and they can agree to someone who will be neutral and try to do what both of them agree to.

The second sister can go to someone familiar with estates and trusts law to see if she does need an attorney. Normally attorneys will give a 15-20 minute free initial interview, but often they will not answer any legal questions as to the case during that interview. The second sister needs to gather together as much information as she can: copy of the Will and any trust agreements, list of the assets with approximate values, copy of the court summary of actions taken [often can download from court web site],any written communications, events of significance list in chronological order, list of what she thnks has not been done or how sister not acting properly, etc.

An attorney could then review those documents fairly quickly and have an opinion as to what next needs to be done, including hiring another attorney expert in tha area of the law [an expert in an urban area will probably charge about $325 per hour; I could properly review the documents for $100 per hour and tell her what she needs to do]. She should not accuse the other sister of acting incorrectly until she has been told that by an attorney as she does not want to burn any bridges withher sister.