late but wondering?

[Sinamen]

What is the name of your state? Pennsylvania
Good morning, my father died last yr. Before he died he received his last installment of a case, which was $75k. He & my mom were married @ that time, but have been separated for some time now, although not divorced. My parents are from W Africa. He has 3 children w/my mom & 2 daughters by a woman in Africa. The daughters lived w/him & me & my 2 siblings lived w/my mom. Anyways, when he died, the 2 sisters never ever brought up the subject of his $. We assumed they would give us 1/2. I know deaths bring out the worst in people. They've avoided us, never returning phone calls, etc. To add insult to injury my dad had the $ put into a money market, bought a cleaning franchise & the rest went into a joint bank account w/1 of the 2 other daughters. Could my mother have fought for which we believe is rightfully her $? He left her nothing, but debt. Thanks in advance!

 

[Dandy Don]

Late might be way too late.

Did the death occur in Pennsylvania?

Was your father married to anyone else at the time of his death?

First thing you need to do is check at the county courthouse probate court (for the city where the death occurred) to see if there is a probate file available on your father. If there is, you can look at the file to see exactly how the estate was handled and who the executor was.

Money market account may have had a named beneficiary and if so, then might not need to go through probate. Who owns the cleaning franchise? That business might possibly be an asset that would be part of his estate--is it still operating or is it sold to someone else? Forget about the joint bank account--at the time of his death that money goes to the joint account owner and doesn't go through probate.

After you have reviewed the documents, you will be in better shape to know whether or not there are enough assets in this estate to where the children should have gotten their fair share. Mother would not be entitled to anything because she got divorced, but possibly the children should have received something--she will need to consult with a Pennsylvania probate attorney to find out for sure.

With no will and if there is a spouse and children of the spouse surviving, the first $30,000 goes to the spouse and 1/2 of the balance over that goes to the spouse and the other 1/2 to the children. If there is a spouse and surviving children NOT of spouse, then 1/2 goes to the spouse and 1/2 to the children. Therefore, with there being surviving children that are his and surviving children that are NOT his, adds a little bit of confusion to the situation that only an attorney can straighten out.

DANDY DON IN OKLAHOMA ([email protected])

 

[Sinamen]

i knew it but had to ask...

Thank you for your response. I just wanted to answer a couple of your questions. My father died in Africa. He was married to my mother who has been in the US w/him for over 33yrs. ALTHOUGH, SEPARATED, THEY NEVER GOT DIVORCED HERE OR IN AFRICA! He also has another wife in Africa, who has been w/him longer than he's been w/my mother. His 2 daughters who were born in Africa, came to the states in the 90's. Me, my sister & brother were born here. I don't believe my father was smart enough to make provisions for benficiaries, etc. We knew he had the joint bank account w/his oldest daughter & that's where all his money went. The franchise is in his name, to which all 5 of his children have signed the contract, not my mother. So the business I guess belongs to us now. I was just wondering if there was still anything we could do. Thanks again!!

 

[Dandy Don]

Then forget what I posted in my previous response since that obviously does not apply.

What city and province in Africa did he die?

What city and state is the business located in?

 

[Sinamen]

He died in Ghana, W Africa in his village of Agbosume to be exact. The business is in Philadelphia, PA.

 

[Dandy Don]

If he lived in Pennsylvania, check with the Register of Wills in Philadephia (215) 686-6250 to see if any type of estate was probated for him in that county. You would also want to check in Agbosume, Africa to find out what, if anything, was done on his estate there.