Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Pennsylvania

Condolences on your loss.

Your brother is entitled to 1/2 of the car. Therefore, he is paying the estate (although that amount should be reserved to you) for your 1/2 interest in the car.

If you are concerned about how the estate is being administered, you should consult your own estates lawyer to protect your interests.

THIS RESPONSE IS NOT LEGAL ADVICE, SINCE I DO NOT HAVE ALL OF THE INFORMATION THAT WOULD BE REQUIRED, AND I DO NOT HAVE A REPRESENTATION AGREEMENT WITH YOU.

* If the answers to your question confirm that you have a valid issue or worthwhile claim, your next step should almost always be to establish a dialog with a lawyer who can provide specific advice to you. Contact a lawyer in your county or township.

* Another reason for contacting a lawyer is that it is often impossible to give a good answer in the Internet Q&A format without having more information. The unique circumstances of your situation and things that you may not have thought to mention in your question may completely change the answer. If you want to be sure that you have a complete answer to your question and an understanding of what that answer means, establish a connection with a lawyer who practices in the area of your concern.

From your post, it sounds like you want to have your cake and eat it too. This is not the way it works.

You do not detail a lot of the relevant facts here. How much assets are in the estate? What is the value of the car? Does the estate need to sell the car to raise cash? What does the will, if any say as to who gets what?

The answers might dictate what happens. If there is no will and no debts and you and your brother just spit the estate (land and all other stuff) equally, then maybe he gets the whole car if he wants it and it counts towards a piece of his share. You get some other combination of assets equal to the value of the assets your brother got.

If the estate needs to raise cash, how much? It may be that since your brother has already inherited half the car he only needs to pay for 1/2 the value of the car into the estate. The estate bills are then paid. Your brother's half of the car is still assigned to him as part of his share plus whatever is needed to equal 50% of the net assets and you get the other 50%.

Since there is an estate lawyer, I have to assume that if the lawyer is reasonably competent that this will be handled correctly and each beneficiary will receive 50% of the net probate assets. If you feel you are being shortchanged, if you are not the executor and the executor and/or estate legal counsel does not adequately explain this to you, then you need to go and hire your own independent probate counsel to review the details and relevant documentation (will, if any, inventory and accounting) and make sure that things are done correctly.