Will/Trust Inheritance Contests

Will/Trust Inheritance Contests If you have evidence a Will was not prepared properly, the signer was incompetent, there was undue influence, you may be able to prevent the filing of the Will in probate if you immediately hire an attorney to file a Caveat to the Will. A. Caveat Is a formal notice by someone to prevent the proving of a Will or the grant of administration of an Estate. The following is one of the NJ Court Rules dealing with a Caveat to Will RULE 4:82. MATTERS IN WHICH THE SURROGATES COURT MAY NOT ACT Unless specifically authorized by order or judgment of the Superior Court, and then only in accordance with such order or judgment, the Surrogates Court shall not act in any matter in which (1) a caveat has been filed with it before the entry of its judgment; (2) a doubt arises on the face of a will or a will has been lost or destroyed; (3) the application is to admit to probate a writing intended as a will as defined by N.J.S.A. 3B:3-2(b) or N.J.S.A. 3B:3-3; (4) the application is to appoint an administrator pendente lite or other limited administrator; (5) a dispute arises before the Surrogates Court as to any matter; or (6) the Surrogate certifies the case to be of doubt or difficulty. If there is no dispute on the validity of the Will, sometimes the Executor does not do their job and you want to have the Executor removed and replaced. Under New Jersey Law, the person selected as an executor of a Will have numerous legal responsibilities following the death of the person who signed the Will. Primarily, they have a duty to probate the Will, liquidate assets, pay bills and taxes, file all necessary court and tax returns, and then distribute the assets to beneficiaries Unfortunately, the Executor occasionally fails to timely carry out their duties. They may fail to timely file tax returns, fail to keep records, misappropriate assets or ignore instructions under the Will. In this case the Executor Mary Kampa has failed to comply with the Duties of Executor in Probate & Estate Administration to: 1. Conduct a thorough search of the decedents personal papers and effects for any evidence which might point them in the direction of a potential asset, namely mineral rights; 2. Keep records of expenses 3. Timely Sell real estate 4 Timely File required inheritance tax returns and provide a copy to Kim Rennie Under United States Supreme Court Case, Tulsa Professional Collection Services, Inc., v. Joanne Pope, Executrix of the Estate of H. Everett Pope, Jr., Deceased, the Personal Representative in every estate is personally responsible to provide actual notice to all known or "readily ascertainable" creditors of the decedent. It is unclear if the executor has fulfilled the responsibility to diligently search for any "readily ascertainable" creditors. It is unclear if the executor timely preformed the below duties: Apply to Federal Tax ID # Set up Estate Account at bank (pay all bills from estate account) Pay Bills Notice of Probate to Beneficiaries File notice of Probate with Surrogate File first Federal and State Income Tax Prepare Inheritance Tax Return and obtain Tax Waivers File waivers within 8 months upon receipt Prepares a accurate Informal Accounting In General. The executors job is to (1) administer the estate--i.e., collect and manage assets, file tax returns and pay taxes and debts--and (2) distribute any assets or make any distributions of bequests, whether personal or charitable in nature, as the deceased directed (under the provisions of the Will Do you think youre entitled to money or might be entitled to money from an estate or trust? Do you believe that someone is unfairly claiming money or property that is rightfully yours? If so, and you are a prospective plaintiff or defendant, then you may need an attorney to protect your rights. These areas are extremely complex, and you should not attempt to reach a decision on whether or not to take action (and, if so what action to take) without the assistance of counsel.