Probate Clarification

from florida: my great aunt recently passed away and no will can be found; who is responsible for starting the probate process? i am her closest living relative and have been involved in her care for the past 4 yrs. also, i am joint owner of her checking, savings and a cd (as of 11/00) - do these monies become part of the estate or do they belong to me?

FEB. 12, 2001

DEAR MS. DI:

You are responsible. Go to the county courthouse and you can get the needed information from them, or get the information from an initial consultation with a probate/estate attorney (first visit is usually free, and you may need the attorney's advice for future matters).

The monies become part of the estate, which you must provide a final accounting for. After you've paid the funeral expenses, debts, and taxes, you get to keep the remainder.

Technically, you need "Letters Testamentary" from the probate court to authorize you to serve as executor, and you would need to show thse papers to a bank or other financial institution before they would give you access to the accounts and CD, but if you already had been listed as an account co-owner in the bank account files, then they might go ahead and release the funds to you anyway.

SINCERELY,

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