Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Georgia

My wife's mother recently died. She left no will. But she left a life insurance policy naming her parents ( long dead) , my wife, her brother, and sister has the beneficiaries. She did not want her husband to get any of it. It was only for $5000.My father-in-law and sister-in-law made the funeral arrangements without consulting my wife and brother-in-law. Now, here's whee it gets sticky. Even though father-in-law had the money to pay for the funeral and burial, they promised that the life insurance policy would be signed over (without wife's or brother-in-laws permission). Day of the funeral, they sprang this surprise on them. They were forced to sign just to be able to bury their mother. Now, what recourse do they have to get their share of the $5000? They didn't want to sign it over, but father-in-law refused to pay for burial.


Asked on 9/19/15, 7:59 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Rachel Hunter

Wills or lack thereof have nothing to do with life insurance. Nor do funeral arrangements.

This is not sticky but stupid. Life insurance proceeds pass outside of a will to the named designated beneficiary. The beneficiary is free to do anything with the insurance money that they please. They did not have to use it to pay for burial expenses. Those would be the responsibility of your mother-in-law's estate. They voluntarily signed this over. They can try submitting a claim against the estate but if mother-in-law owned nothing then there is not going to be a reimbursement because there will be no probate estate. And even if there is no will, then an estate would still need probated if the mother-in-law had assets. Children and father-in-law will split estate assets on a 1/3rd (father in law) - 2/3rd (children) basis.

Why did father-in-law have to pay for the burial? He was not obligated either.

Personally, the children should have said no and left it at that. Funeral home would then have been left with trying to collect from father-in-law and all the children indirectly by suing an estate for mother in law. If there were assets then they would have been paid over time.

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Answered on 9/20/15, 9:49 pm


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