Sibling stealing estate

What is the name of your state? MT

My fiance's uncle died and had no will. He never married and had no children. So by Montana law, his estate goes to his parents first, then to his brothers and sisters. Well, his father is the only living parent but he is 84 and can't get around as well as he used to. As a result of him not getting around as well one of his daughters (sister to the deceased) took it upon herself to take care of the estate. But what she really did was take all of the estate and did not give it to her father. She has since sold some of the items. I am curious what legal options are available to the father of the deceased to recover the items and the estate which rightfully belongs to him. If any one could help me, I would greatly appreciate it.

What is the estimated value of this estate?

If the estate has already closed/been finalized, you really need to go to the county courthouse/probate court to look at your fiance's uncle's probate file, to see exactly how the estate was handled.

If everything that you say is true and can be backed up by supporting documentation/evidence, then you can proceed to the next step.

Was your fiance's uncle mentally incompetent--could he carry on a normal, logical conversation and understand what someone else was telling him? Did he have any specific illnesses or was it just old age that caused him not to move around as well as he used to?

How do you know for sure that the daughter/executor did not give the father anything? If that is what he says happened, then you need to consider whether he would want to hire an attorney to represent his interests. If there was enough in the estate for him to benefit financially (after estate debts and taxes were paid), then a check should have been made out to him. If this executor did not pay him, then an attorney needs to be hired to reopen this probate or to have this executor called before the court to explain her actions.

Find out from the court clerk at the courthouse if executors are required to post executors bond in that county. If so, and you can prove that this man's monies were stolen, it might be possible for you to recover those monies by filing a claim with the bonding insurance company.

Also check the probate file to see how much the executor charged for her services--it is my understanding that executor fee for Montana is 3% of the first $40,000 estate value, plus 2% of anything over $40,000.

DANDY DON