Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in North Carolina

I don't know what your friend signed, so I cannot comment on it. After 6 months, a public administrator can be appointed or any interested person (it should probably be the domestic partner but it could be you) should apply for letters of administration. First though, the domestic partner or you should make an appointment with the clerk of court. The domestic partner/you should explain to the clerk of court about the safe deposit box and an appointment should be made so that the clerk, the domestic partner (or whomever is going to be the personal representative) and a bank official can open the box and inventory its contents. If a will is found (I hope it is) then see what it says and whether the domestic partner or you is indeed the personal representative. Then, do what the will says.

Are you certain that your deceased friend made a will? Could he have left a will in another place? For example, did he have an attorney who may have made the will? Could it have been filed with the clerk of court? You may also want to check there if nothing is found in the safe deposit box. There is no other registry that I know of. If all else fails, keep looking, starting with where he kept important papers.

Powers of attorney end at death and only concern medical procedures to be done on the person while he was alive. If your friend has passed on and is already cremated, the power of attorney will do you no good. I would not bother to hunt for it. Powers of attorney (financial or health care) can be filed with the Secretary of State (I assume your friend lived in North Carolina). You can access the site at www.nclifelinks.org. Did your friend file the power of attorney? If so, he would have received a small card back with log in information so that the power of attorney could be accessed. If he has no card, then it was never filed unless the card was lost somehow. If you and the domestic partner think this might have happened, ask the Secretary of State to see if the power of attorney would have been filed. I don't know how much information they will release if you do not have the card.