Wow - complete disregard for decedent

[catii]

It can get a whole lot uglier than just being uncooperative, believe me!

DW's mother died, very unexpectedly, & somewhat suspiciously, as we had just visited, & she ran us ragged for two weeks. DW was executrix, & will was brand new, as we had picked it up during our visit. DW asked brother to arrange for an autopsy, only to find that he had already had her cremated! He had also put the house up for sale, although it was in DW's name, & it went downhill from there!

Had to go forensic, to find that he had been stripping his mother's accounts, forging her signature, for several years, monies of which were supposed to be DW's, as brother had already been gifted $587K to keep his wife's business afloat. Long, nasty story, brother did prison time, & the court awarded DW both her mother's house AND brother's fully paid-off house! DW refused to kick brother's wife & kids from that house, although she never got as much as a thank-you. Brother died recently, & DW signed the house over to the widow, again with no response, despite house value of $1.1 million!

I just kept my mouth shut, but I wouldn't have been that nice & understanding! Oh, yeah - one last little detail: brother was a police lieutenant!

 

[ncbill]

I still wonder how many of his assets are actually left given sister has that attitude & had POA over his assets for the last several years...

 

[Scuba]

And I know these things because I just went through all this with my mom, who died in November, 2022.
Mom wrote in her will that it didn't have to be probated, but the court said otherwise (UGH) it it took just over seven (7) months to complete the process.
And the best part? It was completed LAST OCTOBER, 2023 and the court never bothered to notify my attorney that the estate was closed ("we don't know why you weren't notified, Mr. Lawyer. Oopsie.") We JUST found out this week it had been closed the second week of October....

Anyway, to my points:
1) probate is REQUIRED now for EVERYONE who dies in Fulton County, GA, intestate or not, thanks to the last elected probate judge.
2) POA extinguishes on death of the grantor of said POA
3) if SIL has been withdrawing funds AFTER BIL's death it seems she is probably in violation of law, and if it were me I would get a good attorney.

Her comment of "I should get most of it because..." is, IMO, invalid.
Just because she CHOSE to do that, and perhaps because OP does not live near BIL, is NO EXCUSE for that type of behavior.
But that's just me.
Some people will say "after someone is gone those that remain will do as they may", but IMO those that remain should try to do right by the deceased and follow their wishes....

I’m sorry you went through that. I agree 100%. Even if I get no financial benefit, I would like for BIL’s wishes to be carried out to the extent possible.

 

[Scuba]

It can get a whole lot uglier than just being uncooperative, believe me!

DW's mother died, very unexpectedly, & somewhat suspiciously, as we had just visited, & she ran us ragged for two weeks. DW was executrix, & will was brand new, as we had picked it up during our visit. DW asked brother to arrange for an autopsy, only to find that he had already had her cremated! He had also put the house up for sale, although it was in DW's name, & it went downhill from there!

Had to go forensic, to find that he had been stripping his mother's accounts, forging her signature, for several years, monies of which were supposed to be DW's, as brother had already been gifted $587K to keep his wife's business afloat. Long, nasty story, brother did prison time, & the court awarded DW both her mother's house AND brother's fully paid-off house! DW refused to kick brother's wife & kids from that house, although she never got as much as a thank-you. Brother died recently, & DW signed the house over to the widow, again with no response, despite house value of $1.1 million!

I just kept my mouth shut, but I wouldn't have been that nice & understanding! Oh, yeah - one last little detail: brother was a police lieutenant!

Wow, that is awful! Your DW sounds like a saint!

 

[Scuba]

I still wonder how many of his assets are actually left given sister has that attitude & had POA over his assets for the last several years...

Good question. I’m very interested to know also.

 

[jcretire77]

Why did an 'ethical' attorney write a new will for someone with Alzheimers? My mother who was diagnosed with dementia had a 25 year old will and we suggested having it updated as one of my sisters last name had changed and the other was an address change. There were two minor items that no longer existed that could have been removed. Our/her attorney said to not mess with filing a new will even with such minor changes to ensure that everything looked and was above board.

 

[OldShooter]

I still wonder how many of his assets are actually left given sister has that attitude & had POA over his assets for the last several years...

Well with luck she has assets outside the estate that can be used for restitution. Bank and brokerage accounts, houses, cars, expensive possessions, ... If she has gambled the dough away then the OP is probably out of luck.

People are sometimes ordered to pay x dollars per month restitution but I have no idea how that typically works out.

Again, this is why the OP has a lawyer.

 

[obsessed]

Why did an 'ethical' attorney write a new will for someone with Alzheimers? My mother who was diagnosed with dementia had a 25 year old will and we suggested having it updated as one of my sisters last name had changed and the other was an address change. There were two minor items that no longer existed that could have been removed. Our/her attorney said to not mess with filing a new will even with such minor changes to ensure that everything looked and was above board.

Based on what we are hearing, I'm wondering if this new will even exists. The SIL may have just brought it up to scare the OP off from filing the original will.

 

[ivinsfan]

Based on what we are hearing, I'm wondering if this new will even exists. The SIL may have just brought it up to scare the OP off from filing the original will.

You do realize we are hearing just one side of the story here? IMO those original wills were setup in a way that leads exactly to these kind of issues. At any rate I'm sure the couple didn't envision this kind of problem.

 

[obsessed]

You do realize we are hearing just one side of the story here?

Yup, I'm perfectly aware of that.

 

[Scuba]

You do realize we are hearing just one side of the story here? IMO those original wills were setup in a way that leads exactly to these kind of issues. At any rate I'm sure the couple didn't envision this kind of problem.

Not sure what you think was wrong with the way the original wills were set up. The original will was drafted by a very reputable attorney, specified the decedent’s wishes clearly, and was notarized and witnessed by independent parties. If the couple had envisioned this problem, they would have selected a more trustworthy POA.

 

[Scuba]

Why did an 'ethical' attorney write a new will for someone with Alzheimers? My mother who was diagnosed with dementia had a 25 year old will and we suggested having it updated as one of my sisters last name had changed and the other was an address change. There were two minor items that no longer existed that could have been removed. Our/her attorney said to not mess with filing a new will even with such minor changes to ensure that everything looked and was above board.

I don’t think any reputable attorney would write a new will, and thus far, it has not been documented that one exists. I doubt that it does, and even if it does, I doubt a probate judge will look kindly on a recently updated will that an Alzheimer’s patient living in Memory Care signed.

 

[ivinsfan]

I'm just commenting on the type of will,,not about this will in particular...ie the last to die provision.