Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Colorado
My cousin just passed away and he resided in Colorado, but his brothers who both reside in New York City wanted to know who they could contact to find out if he had a will (or not). Would they contact a certain department in the State of Colorado?
2 Answers from Attorneys
It is possible he filed his will with the courts in Colorado (most likely in the county where he resided), but few people do this. Generally, you are looking through his filed, seeing if he had a safe deposit box, etc. to see if there was a will. If there was not, his estate passes by intestate succession. You are welcome to call me for a free initial consultation if I can be of further assistance.
The best approach is to search through his documents and records. It is unlikely that he filed the Will with the Court because that is done so rarely these days, especially since the Douglas County Court house burned down several years ago.
Search through or have someone search all his records, files and papers. Check bank statements for any reference to a safe deposit box.
And most of all, don't rely on advice from the internet, consider engaging an attorney specializing in estate administration for assistance.