Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in New York
Where's the Will?
My father in law recently passed. He had 2 sons, neither of them reside in NY now. My husband returned to NY as soon as humanly possible, arriving about 5 hours behind his brother. All funeral arrangements were made by the time he arrived, he was left out of all decisions! At first he was told the will was in probate (less than 48 hours after death... impossible!), later he was told there was no will or it couldn't be found and then again later he was told they had the will at one point but it was lost at this point. All my father in law's personal belongings have been divided among my brother in law, his wife, my father in law's brother and his wife. The only thing my husband received was pictures we had sent of our children. Everything seems very shady to us. We do not care about the money, but the fact that noone wants to be honest truly bothers both of us. We know a will existed; how can my husband legally obtain a copy (if they are still saying it's lost)? How would he go about getting what he rightfully deserves? Should he not be entitled to some of his father's personal belongings? I didn't think anything could be divided or gone through until the will was read?
3 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Where's the Will?
Unless a copy was filed with the court or you know the attorney you may never see it. Since 3 children survived he is entitled to 1/3 of the estate.
Re: Where's the Will?
To find the will: try contacting your father in-law's attorney. Also check if he had a safe deposit box.
If the will never turns up, your husband may file for letters of administration with the Surrogate's court, get named Adminsitrator, and demand his share (sounds like he is entitled to 1/3) of the estate, including personal belongings.
Feel free to email my office if you have any other questions. Good luck.
Re: Where's the Will?
Unless you know of the attorney who drew the original, to get a copy, all that is possible is to advertise to see if anyone knows of a Will. If no spouse survivved, the children are equally entitled to the estate, and to qualify as administrators. Your husband could contest his brother's appointment on the basis of what happened with the personal property, and can also demand an accounting and seek to surcharge his brother for anything that is missing and cannot be equally divided or evaluated and paid for. Sounds like there will probably be a lawsuit involved in this estate between the children.
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.
