Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Illinois

My grandmother has recently passed away and my brother is the trustee on her revocable living trust, do we need a lawyer to handle everything or can my brother cash out the cd's, bonds, saving accounts, etc and disperse it to the family as stated. Also the lawyer is stating we have to wait 6 months to allow my mother (the only heir) the chance to contest the will and trust if she wants. She does not want to do this. is the 6 months required by law or can she sign something that states she will not contest? Also is this only for the asests in the will or does this apply to the trust as well?


Asked on 5/10/10, 6:40 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Cyndi Perez Trostin

6 months is the statutory time period for which creditors have to file claims against the Estate. Sometimes there is language in the trust that allows it to make payments on behalf of the Estate if valid claims are filed. If this is the case, then the lawyer would likey be correct to wait the 6 months.

If there is no probate estate, potential creditors of the estate have up to 2 years to file a claim. The problem with making distributions early is that the beneficiaries could be in a situation where they would have to return money to the Estate or trust in order to pay the creditors. In this case, the executor and trustee would be responsible for making sure the monies were reclaims and the creditors paid.

Hope this helps. If you are working with a lawyer, it would probably be a good idea to sit down with him/her and have him walk you through the timing of everything and the reasons for doing things the way he suggests.

Good luck to you.

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Answered on 5/17/10, 11:56 am


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