Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Georgia
My mother died intestate in Sept. 2011 with 2 heirs,my sister & myself. We have divided her property amicably between us. A local lawyer in late Nov. 2011 drew up a quit claim deed for her 2 houses. It states she gave them to me & my sister, I signed my part to my sister and she signed one house over to my son and she kept one. Is this legal since my mother was dead at the time the QC deed was done? She also had 2 tracts of land and we are wanting to divide them the same way. Will the titles be suffiecient proof of ownership for a potential buyer or bank?
2 Answers from Attorneys
Without a probate, none of you own the property. It can't be divided that way. I can't fathom any lawyer recommending something that completely wrong (unless you have left a whole lot out).
Why was an estate not probated for your mother? How could a quitclaim deed be done if your mother is dead? The deed has to be signed by the grantor, i.e., your mother. So how did she sign?
Sometimes the heirs can sign, but here very little time passed between your mother's death and this quitclaim deed. Unless you have some document indicating that probate was not necessary, I would take all this to a competent probate attorney and pay him/her to review this situation. An estate may still need to be probated for your motther.
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