Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Illinois

Re: notify after someone dies

There really isn't a "one-size-fits-all" check list for notifying people of a death. Who you should notify depends upon the relationships, assets, businesses, trade or profession, income sources, mental state and other circumstances of the decedent's life. A few questions/thoughts to get you started:

Does this person have a will? If so, the executor of the will needs to be doing the notifying. If there is no will, then the administrator of the estate should be doing the notifying.

If the decedent has bank accounts, then you need to notify each bank where the decedent had an account.

For other financial accounts, insurance or investments, you need to notify the brokers or agents (I keep using plurals because you may be surprised at how many different policies and investments even a very modest estate will have).

Does the decedent have any dependents? Then you will to see if they are entitled to any benefits (in addition to insurance) due to the death (such as social security and other survivor/dependent benefits).

Does the decedent have any creditors, such as a mortgage, credit cards, accounts, etc.? They will need to be notified as well. And, some mortgages and other loans become payable in full upon death.

Was the decedent running a business or self-employed at the time of death? If so, in addition to creditors, you will need to notify employees, customers expecting things that were unfinished/undelivered at death, insurance carriers, and the government agencies that issued the permits and licenses that the business needed to operate.

If the decedent was receiving social security benefits, annuity payments or income from a privately held partnership, corporaiton or trust, then those payors will need to be notified.

If the decedent was mentally incompetent, and had a guardian or a representative payee, then they will need to be notified as well.

This is just a general list, and may not fully cover everyhting, but it should get you started. Feel free to contact me if I can be of help.

Re: notify after someone dies

Before you start notifying, I would suggest that you assess the situation. An importnat thing to do is try to create an inventory of assets and determine any debts. For assets, pay close attention to exactly how the asset is titled and/or who the designated beneficiary is. Keep in mind that how an asset will pass depends first on how it is titled. Only assets titled in the decedent's sole name (with no desig bene) pass under the will, if any, or if no will then according state law via the probate estate. Notifying sole name accoutholders will not be sufficient to transfer or change title unless you open a probate estate or use a small estate affidavit if the total sole name exceeds is less than $50,000. There are many other things to consider depending on the circumstances. It is generally advisable for the person who will be handling the estate to hire an attorney to protect himself and the estate. Feel free to give me a call at (847) 991-2250 to discuss.