Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Massachusetts
Legal and Moral Dilemma
My brother passed on 8/01,leaving on his IRA 2 of 4 sisters,beneficiaries trusting us to do the right thing and divide it four ways with our 2 other sisters as he was very frugal and didn't want to make out a will.One sister wants to keep the 50%arguing''he would have named all of us had he wanted us to share it 4 ways''.
He asked me to take care of things when he died. I declined as am i'll and couldn't know my health status upon his death. We (3 sisters) had told him him she could be trusted and apon her request we also made her administrator of his estate.
She is trying to justify keeping the money.I will split it as I know what he wanted, she has admitted she knows too.Is there any legal recourse to her actions. She hired a lawyer to ''find out her legal rights''and to ask personal questions & uses the him as estate lawyer ,of course this way the estate will pay.(conflict of intrest?)
My father who also died last summer did it the same way leaving bank accounts and insurance policies in our oldest sisters name. She is honest and doing the right thing as he wanted.
Is there any way the greedy sister's name can removed as administrator?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Legal and Moral Dilemma
When a person dies without a will, the state has a set of laws that determine how the decedent's property will be divided. It is not up to the family to "make up" a will of what the departed would have wanted.
You need to take into account whether your brother had a spouse, and whether he has any children or grandchildren. Are your parents living. I suggest that you accurately draw out a family tree, like the geneologists might draw (people who track family history), and see an attorney. The division is based on a formula, depending on the family structure. It is not up to a close relative to decide what the apportioned amounts are.
Where there are IRAs to divide, the total amount is fairly easy to compute. IF things re to be divided 4 ways among brothers and sisters, that means four equal shares (same dollar amount to each). It gets tricky when everyone wants a desk, a candle holder, or a set of photograhs (which may not be able to be divided).
Thinking that a will is expensive is often foolish, in that the amount of money spent by the family fighting over the division of proeprty is often many times more than what it would have cost to have a will that was clear, and stated exactly what went to each heir.
Good luck.
Related Questions & Answers
Looking for something else?
10,200 active attorneys ready to answer your legal questions today.
Featured Attorneys
Earn additional revenue and grow your business.
