Walk It Through: The Estate And The Bills
A father with no will, a small bank account, and bills that arrive months later.
A man dies without a will, leaving a wife and two grown children.
Two things a person in this spot might do. Picking one shows what the law says about it.
One family after one death. Joint accounts, life insurance, the home and its deed, funeral expenses and estate taxes are not worked through here.
A practice walkthrough, not a prediction of how any real one will go. Legal information, not legal advice.
Words this turns on
Terms with a legal meaning that is narrower than the everyday one. Each links to the definition and the authority behind it.
- Exempt propertyProperty of a debtor that cannot be attached, levied on or sold to pay a judgment, such as a residence up to $50,000, one vehicle up to $5,000 and household goods up to $4,000.
- Intestate estateWhat passes when a person dies without a will. The surviving spouse takes all of it if there are no surviving issue, and one-half if there are.
- IssueA person's descendants, who take the part of an intestate estate not passing to the spouse, equally if all of the same degree of kinship, and otherwise by representation.
- AgentThe person a power of attorney authorizes to act for the principal, who acts in good faith, within the authority granted, loyally and in the principal's best interest, and keeps a record of every transaction.
- Small estate affidavitThe affidavit a successor presents, thirty days after a death and countersigned by the probate judge, to collect property from a probate estate worth no more than $45,000.
- Notice to creditorsThe notice a personal representative publishes once a week for three successive weeks, telling creditors to present their claims within eight months after the first publication or be forever barred.