executor problems

[stod2378]

What is the name of your state? Minnesota

My dad passed away in august 2001. I solely took care of him for the last year of his life with no help from my four other sisters.
My father bought a car 2+ years ago and I was a joint owner. My oldest sister is executor of the will and says I get no personal effects of my fathers as I recived the car. Is the car part of the estate? The willl says everything is to divided by 1/5. I feel since I was the only one there for my father while he was dying that the car is an added bonus he meant for me. The executor feels differently as I didn't pay rent to my father while I was caring for him. His personal effects are worth a great deal of money and have already been divided up among my four sisters. The estate has not yet been settled and the home not yet sold. Is it legal to leave me completely out because I owned a car with my father?

 

[Dandy Don]

No, you should not be left out just because you got the car, but it is a little bit more complicated than that.

What is the value of the car, and did you make any payments on it, and are there still any payments left to be made? At the time of death, was the car paid for or not?

You have a right to a share of the personal effects, but it is too late for that now. (They could have sold the personal effects and then split the cash 5 ways, but it may have been a little bit difficult to sell personal items). I would forget about trying to claim some personal effects and instead make sure you receive your 1/5 of whatever remaining estate assets are left to be divided.

DANDY DON

 

[stod2378]

The car is currently valued at $6500. It was completely paid for at the time of purchase for $18,000. I have made no payments on the car just many costly repairs. I feel as I have have been more than nice to my sisters. I recieved two large insurance checks solely in my name that I turned over the estate to be split thinking they would also do everything fairly--now I regret it.

 

[Dandy Don]

Please clarify--what is the value of the home that is yet to be sold, and what is the estimated value of the estate (not including the home) minus the amount you gave to the estate for insurance?

 

[stod2378]

The estate minus the home is worth around 100,000. After sale of the home it will have around another $80,000 added to it. The insurance checks from me were around $17,000.

 

[Dandy Don]

You would need to speak to a local probate attorney to find out exactly what your rights are to the car. Under the concept of right of survivorship and co-ownership, although I am not familiar with Minnesota business law or probate law, the ownership of the car automatically passes to upon death of the other co-owner, and that ownership has no effect on anything else you would receive from the estate--so therefore, your sister/executor's statement that you get nothing else because you got the car is incorrect and not legal.

Send the executor a certified letter (so you can prove that you made the request) asking that the insurance money be returned to you immediately, since any lawyer knows that insurance money is not considered a probate asset and is separate from the estate, and that you submitted that money by mistake.

If she won't do it within a reasonable amount of time, 1-2 weeks, then get your own attorney if you can afford it to also insure protect your interests to see that the estate is divided up legally and correctly and so that you or your attorney can at least attend the probate hearings so that any questions or objections you have can be straightened out before the estate is officially closed.

DANDY DON ([email protected])