What documents do I need to prove I’m authorized to receive court-held funds on behalf of an estate? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, the person who can usually receive court-held funds for a decedent’s estate is the court-appointed personal representative (executor or administrator). The most common proof is a certified copy of…
How do I find out what assets my child had, like bank accounts, a car, or other property, and how those get transferred? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, the cleanest way to identify and collect an adult child’s assets is usually to have a personal representative (executor/administrator) appointed by the Clerk of…
How do I start probate and enforce the will if the surviving spouse is occupying the property? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, probate usually starts by taking the original will and a death certificate to the Clerk of Superior Court in the county where the decedent lived, and having a personal representative…
Do we need written payoff instructions or confirmation from the inheritance-advance company before mailing an overnight check? – North Carolina Short Answer North Carolina law does not require a special “payoff letter” from an inheritance-advance company before an estate mails a check. But as a practical matter, written payoff instructions (or written confirmation of the…
What happens if the funeral bill is not fully paid when the estate is being handled? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, an unpaid funeral bill is a claim against the estate, and the personal representative generally pays it from estate funds before most other debts. If the estate does not have enough…
How can I verify whether a property is owned individually or jointly before the estate is settled? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, the most reliable way to verify whether a deceased parent owned real property individually or jointly is to review the most recent recorded deed (and related recorded documents) in the…
What happens if a family member claims I pressured my parent into signing a will, especially when my parent had dementia or Alzheimer’s? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, a family member can challenge a will by filing a “caveat” and arguing the will is invalid because the parent lacked testamentary capacity or…
If a non-spouse partner wants to keep one of the deceased’s vehicles, how is that handled in probate and does it reduce what the heirs receive? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina probate, a non-spouse partner generally does not have an automatic right to keep a deceased person’s vehicle unless the partner already…
What happens to a trust when the person who created it dies? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, when the person who created a revocable trust dies, the trust typically becomes irrevocable and the successor trustee takes over. The trustee’s job is to gather and manage the trust assets, pay proper expenses and…
How can I transfer the vehicles and access the bank account while making sure the land goes to the relatives who live on it? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, when someone dies without a will, the land and other property generally pass to the legal heirs set by the intestacy statutes—not to…
