Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Massachusetts
My father recently passed away. He was not married and has 4 adult children. While alive my sister had Power of Attorney (POA) and was able to write checks and make withdrawals from his checking/savings accounts. She was not a signer on those accounts. Now that he has passed, the accounts have been frozen and we don't have access to his assets. We need to file his 2015 tax returns and pay what he owes with that money. We have agreed to split the remainder equally. There is approximately $52,000 combined in both accounts. He has no other assets to split. Is there a simple way to get access to this money without the time, cost and aggravation of probate court? He was a Massachusetts resident and died in Milford, MA which is in Worcester County.
2 Answers from Attorneys
The short answer is: No there is not. Because your father was the sole owner of the accounts, they now make up this probate estate. In order to be authorized to access the funds, one or more of you needs to be appointed as Personal Representative of the estate. The POA is not effective after death and the process for small estates (Voluntary Administration) is not available for estates over $25,000. If all interested parties agree, the process is not that long or complicated. Once someone is appointed as Personal Representative, he or she will have the power to pay estate bills, close accounts and, eventually, make distributions in accordance with the intestacy statute. In this case, unless there are predeceased children who left children, then your plan of distributing equally among the four of you is what the statute provides. Good luck -
I am sorry but you have to file a Petition for Informal Probate. Decide who you want to be the Personal Representative and get consents from all the children to file with the Petition and send a letter to Massachusetts health.
If you want assistance, you can contact the lawyer of the day at the local probate court or contact an attorney like me.
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