What proof is needed to obtain death certificate and take control of trust.

[stingrayy990]

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

I have a living trust for my assets and my sister is the successor trustee. I understand that after my death, my sister will need to obtain death certificate to take control of my trust. I would like to know what documentation does she need to provide to obtain the death certificate? We are immigrants (US citizens) so documentation is hard to come by and may not even be accepted. Obviously there are no hospital records etc.
Any information is much appreciated.

Thanks

 

[Silverplum]

For Orange County: http://ocrecorder.com/services/records/death

Look on your county's website, if not Orange.

 

[FlyingRon]

Make sure that she knows where the originals of the trust document are and how to get at them. You make things easier for her if you also keep a listing of the trust assets.

 

[Dandy Don]

Either you or your sister can order the document by mail by simply filling out a form, and the second page of the form will be a sworn statement that would list your name and your sister's name as legal heirs.
The sworn statement form you will need to sign in front of a person called a notary public and there will probably be a small fee payable to the notary, probably $10.00 or less, to prove that the notary witnessed your signature.
You can usually find a notary public in a bank or in the yellow pages directory.
Other than that, there is no other documentation required.

 

[Zigner]

Either you or your sister can order the document by mail by simply filling out a form, and the second page of the form will be a sworn statement that would list your name and your sister's name as legal heirs.
The sworn statement form you will need to sign in front of a person called a notary public and there will probably be a small fee payable to the notary, probably $10.00 or less, to prove that the notary witnessed your signature.
You can usually find a notary public in a bank or in the yellow pages directory.
Other than that, there is no other documentation required.

(just FYI)
$10 is the maximum set by law in CA that a notary can charge per signature.

 

[stingrayy990]

Thanks for all the replies. A few follow up questions.
Since I am still pretty young, it really applies for accidental or sudden death, which could happen anywhere and not in the county I live in. Am I right to assume that the laws are pretty similar all over US? Is there a way I take care of this now to reduce any work/risk later?
Here is what I got from Sacramento county website:
A parent or legal guardian of the registrant.
A party entitled to receive the record as a result of a court order, or an attorney or a licensed adoption agency seeking the birth record in order to comply with the requirements of Section 3140 or 7603 of the Family Code.
A member of a law enforcement agency or a representative of another governmental agency, as provided by law, who is conducting official business.
A child, grandparent, grandchild, sibling, spouse, or domestic partner of the registrant.
An attorney representing the registrant or the registrant's estate, or any person or agency empowered by statute or appointed by a court to act on behalf of the registrant or the registrant's estate.
A funeral director ordering certified copies of a death certificate on behalf of an individual specified in paragraphs (1) to (5), inclusive, of subdivision (a) of Section 7100 of the Health and Safety Code.

That does cover sibling, assuming the county will accept a foreign birth certificate for my sister as proof. Again, will be nice if I could take care of it now.

"Dandy Don", are you saying the form can be filled out now and notarized? Although I am not sure how applicable this is since the form is county specific.


Thank you very much for all your inputs, it really helps.

 

[Zigner]

You are overthinking this. Your sister will be able to easily find out the information she needs to know when (if?) the time comes.

Thanks for all the replies. A few follow up questions.
Since I am still pretty young, it really applies for accidental or sudden death, which could happen anywhere and not in the county I live in. Am I right to assume that the laws are pretty similar all over US? Is there a way I take care of this now to reduce any work/risk later?
Here is what I got from Sacramento county website:
A parent or legal guardian of the registrant.
A party entitled to receive the record as a result of a court order, or an attorney or a licensed adoption agency seeking the birth record in order to comply with the requirements of Section 3140 or 7603 of the Family Code.
A member of a law enforcement agency or a representative of another governmental agency, as provided by law, who is conducting official business.
A child, grandparent, grandchild, sibling, spouse, or domestic partner of the registrant.
An attorney representing the registrant or the registrant's estate, or any person or agency empowered by statute or appointed by a court to act on behalf of the registrant or the registrant's estate.
A funeral director ordering certified copies of a death certificate on behalf of an individual specified in paragraphs (1) to (5), inclusive, of subdivision (a) of Section 7100 of the Health and Safety Code.

That does cover sibling, assuming the county will accept a foreign birth certificate for my sister as proof. Again, will be nice if I could take care of it now.

"Dandy Don", are you saying the form can be filled out now and notarized? Although I am not sure how applicable this is since the form is county specific.


Thank you very much for all your inputs, it really helps.