How can we replace the corporate trustee named in the will with a different trust company, and do all beneficiaries need to agree before anything is funded? – North Carolina Short Answer Under North Carolina law, replacing the corporate trustee named in a will usually requires either following any replacement language in the will or…
What is the best way to handle the estate and trust tax returns and keep enough funds available to pay the preparer while we resolve outstanding bills or claims? – North Carolina Short Answer Under North Carolina law, the personal representative should treat tax returns and preparation fees as core administration expenses and plan for…
Do I need to include a creditor with a UCC filing in the estate’s standard notice to creditors, or is it treated separately from debts tied to real property? – North Carolina Short Answer Under North Carolina probate law, a creditor whose claim is secured by a UCC filing on the decedent’s personal property is…
What happens if other heirs delay or refuse to sign the receipt for distribution? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, an heir’s delay or refusal to sign a receipt for distribution does not give that person extra rights, but it can complicate closing the estate. The personal representative can still tender the distribution,…
Do I need to open a separate estate account if there was a joint bank account and I used court papers to move other accounts into my name? – North Carolina Short Answer Under North Carolina probate practice, a personal representative generally should open a separate estate checking account and run all estate receipts and…
After filing the inventory, what does the accounting require to document payments to creditors and taxes and distributions to myself? – North Carolina Short Answer In a North Carolina estate, each annual or final accounting filed with the Clerk of Superior Court must show every dollar that came into and went out of the estate,…
How are cash distributions calculated when some assets were missing or tied up in bankruptcy? – North Carolina Short Answer Under North Carolina probate law, cash distributions to heirs or beneficiaries are based on the actual assets that the personal representative is able to collect, after paying valid debts, taxes, and expenses. If property is…
Do I need written consent from the surviving spouse to receive the car, and what should that document include? – North Carolina Short Answer Under North Carolina law, if no estate has been opened and the vehicle is not being awarded to the surviving spouse as part of a year’s allowance, title is usually transferred…
Will claiming or transferring the car now affect the surviving spouse’s current or upcoming Medicaid eligibility? – North Carolina Short Answer Under North Carolina law, one vehicle is usually an exempt resource for Medicaid, so simply claiming or retitling a modest personal car from a deceased spouse’s estate often does not, by itself, cause loss…
If no estate has been opened, can the named executor sign the vehicle title, or do we need a different process? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, a person named as executor in a will has no legal authority to sign a vehicle title until the clerk of superior court actually issues letters…
