Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Pennsylvania

Whoa. Just because one year passed does not mean you petition for an accounting. First, have you contacted the court to see if an estate was ever probated? If not, why not? There are lots of reasons - perhaps the deceased had no probate assets. If an estate is probated, who is the personal representative? Estate attorney if there is one? What has been done? Has an inventory been filed? Any claims? Have the tax authorities signed off? If the estate is taking longer to complete, has a status report been filed?

You need to first have a general idea of what the deceased owned and how it was titled. Are there probate assets? Things like life insurance, jointly held real property with right of survivorship, or jointly owned bank accounts are not probate assets. If there are probate assets has a petition for probate been filed? If not, why not? What is your relationship to the deceased? Do you want to do it? Does the deceased have a will?

Once you find out the answers to th/e above questions, then you can decide on what to do. If there is no estate that is currently pending and one does need probated, then you or any interested person can apply for probate. You do not need a lawyer but its a good idea to at least consult with one.

If an estate is pending, then you do not petition for an accounting. You contact the personal representative to find out when a final accounting will be filed. If you do not get a response, you petition the court to either compel the personal representative to do his/her job or else face removal Eventually the clerk will remove the personal representative if nothing is done. I would suggest that if you need to remove the personal representative that you get a lawyer.