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Requirments for beneficiary to get retirement account?

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efflandt

Senior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? CA

Not quite sure where this belongs, but it is currently about a friend trying to get a trustee for what we believe is a retirement account to release it or transfer it to an IRA for her as beneficiary. But the trustee has been very uncooperative and has not even told her what type of account it is, account number, or what she needs to do to get it.

Her mom worked for San Diego County in the probation department long ago, so I assume that SDDOC I saw on paperwork was for San Diego Dept of Corrections. But from the cooperation my friend has been getting from them, seems more like department of corruption.

Her 97 year old mom's legs failed to heal after a kid playing on a wheelchair ran into her. Her brother pulled their mom out of the San Diego nursing home (studio apartment) and she died soon after at his home 2 years ago. Since their mother's death he has broken off all contact with his sister. So she doesn't even know if her mom was buried or where, whether probate was done (no real estate or titled assets), and has not received any jewelry or small items her mom said she could have.

San Diego County originally called her telling her she was a beneficiary and looking for her brother, but would not say any more. She provided them with a certified copy of the death certificate. Early this year they sent her a form to transfer it to an IRA which she filled out and returned and made arrangements with Wells Fargo for the account, but nothing has happened since January. She had an attorney friend from church send them a letter with all the info again, and the reply from San Diego was that she needed to provide a certifiied copy of the death certificate (again?).

It is not a lot of money, just half of $3600. But on top of their mother dying and her brother not responding to her at all, she has no relatives and is distraught. So the county telling her she has money coming, but not what they require before they give it to her, is downright mean.

What documents should she have to provide as beneficiary to have an inherited retirement account transferred to a proper IRA account or given to her?

She doesn't even know if her brother is still alive, but an internet search for his name still shows him as president of Clarklift of California and as a $1000 contributor to Hillary in 1st quarter 2008. I don't think he is hurting for money, the only reason he sold his home in Malibu was concern about fires (rebuilt once). Although, his wife may be high maintenance (cousin of famous singer).What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?
 


BlondiePB

Senior Member
What documents should she have to provide as beneficiary to have an inherited retirement account transferred to a proper IRA account or given to her?
efflandt, have your friend call the folks with the money again. This time, have her go up the chain of command to a supervisor/manager rather than dealing with the minions who obviously don't know what the heck they are doing. IMO, it would be best to have the monies sent directly to her rather than the IRA. Your friend can invest the monies herself. This will be less paperwork for the folks with the money.

Probate records are public. It would be wise for her to obtain a copy of the file.
 

efflandt

Senior Member
The San Diego County department that actually has the money is SD CERA.

Apparently the correspondence she did receive was all signed by the same woman. But she may have gotten off on the wrong foot with that woman initially when she would not tell her what to do on the phone (at one point the woman hung up on her).

Since they were also trying to contact her brother as the other beneficiary who seems to have dropped into a black hole, maybe that is holding things up. I did send e-mail to her brother's wife (whose personal e-mail address was still listed at Pepperdine U. where she worked) shortly after the initial SD contact 2 years ago, but never got a reply.

I told her to take the certified death certificate to the county and maybe her birth certificate too. But the death of her mother and lack of any contact from her brother has been tearing her up and she just wants to put this behind her. I am afraid she might climb over the counter if they give her a hard time (she laughed at that comment).

If probate was filed, not sure if it would be Los Angeles county where she died or based on her last permanent address in San Diego. My friend has no clue if her mom was paying her own way or had assets other than her one room apartment furnishings since her brother had been taking care of everything.

With the financial state of the state of California maybe SD county is just giving her a hard time figuring she will give up, so the money will go to the state. For $1800 minus taxes it is hardly worth the aggravation.
 
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