no will, no probate

[SJC]

My mother was living in Oklahoma and died last spring without leaving a will. There wasn't much to divide between my 3 brothers and I so there will be no probate. We easily agreed on who got what. My share was the royalties on a small oil and gas lease for mineral rights only (less than $500.00 per year). I need some advise on what documetation I need from my brothers to have the royalites put in my name. I am currently living in Arizona and can't afford an attorney. Thanks for your help.

 

[advisor10]

10-24-2001

DEAR SJC:

Your posting is somewhat confusing:

(1) Whose name are the oil royalties in now--your mother's name or someone else's?

(2) If you know what oil company has the mineral rights for your lease, you could contact them for more information. If you need help getting their address or phone number, send me an e-mail and I can get it for you. It is possible that an attorney might not be needed just for the name transfer, possibly all you would need to do is fill out a form.

(3) Since there was no probate for your mother's estate, you may run into a small problem if the oil company asks for official authorization from the estate executor, who is the only official person authorized to claim a share or handle any paperwork for a decedent's assets. Maybe they would accept a notarized statement from your brothers (the other heirs) that they would also agree to putting your name on the lease. Oil company will be reluctant to send out any royalty checks unless they know who all the heirs are and whether or not they have any interest or share in the royalties.

SINCERELY,

[email protected]

 

[SJC]

Thank you for your reply. The royalties are currently still in my mothers name as far as I can tell. I did contact the oil company and they sent me a paper saying I needed a copy of the death certificate, evidence that there are no debts against the estate, and two copies of an affidavid of heirship. The problem I am encountering is that the affidavit of heirship lists all heirs (which would include my brothers). There was nothing in their list that told me how to let them know that my brothers had agreed to give me their shares.

 

[advisor10]

10-25-2001

I'm guessing that the reason they sent you 2 forms for Affidavit of Heirship (if the forms are exact duplicates of each other) is that they want you to send the 2 forms to your brothers for them to sign and return. Keep a copy of 1 of the forms for yourself to fill out.

The problem is that you all have no official record of probate filing. Even if there was no will, you or someone in the family should have filed the simplified procedure for intestate estates (when there is no will) at the county courthouse of the city where the death occurred. You may have assumed it would be expensive, but it is probably an inexpensive filing fee (I'll bet the fee is less than $100). You need to contact the county courthouse, probate section to find out what is required to file for probate, and then do it.

Whoever files can file a petition to be the personal administrator of the estate and will soon receive official papers to be the personal administrator, in charge of claiming all assets and paying all estate debts. You could even place a letter in the file that officially states that the estate is virtually bankrupt (has no assets other than the royalties, or whatever) and is less than $1,000 (or whatever the value is).

If you want me to find the address and phone number for the county courthouse in Oklahoma so you can contact them, send me an e-mail that tells me what city/state your mother died in, and I can send that information to you.

The name change on the royalties is not going to be a simple thing. The oil company is going to need certified copies of official documentation from the county courthouse before they will do the name change. You may even need to get a signed and notarized letter from each of your brothers that mentions they are assigning their royalty rights to you. If you are patient, you will eventually get this done. If you don't want to go through all the trouble, then it may be easier for the oil company to send the checks to your brothers and then have them cash them in and send the money to you.

SINCERELY,

[email protected]

 

[SJC]

Thank you for taking the time to reply. However, it sounds like you are guessing even more than I am. So I will give you the long explanation for what I have. I have detailed explanations of Okla. law that were sent to me by the oil co. for what I have given you so far. The instructions for the affidavit of heirship say that I must send them to 2 people who knew my mother and her family history well who are not members of the family and have them fill them out listing all of her childern. Then these 2 seperate people are to sign and notorize them and file them at the county court house where the property of the wells are located (Payne County Okla.). Once this is done I am to send a copy of the death certificate and evidence that there are no debts against the estate to the oil company.
However, as I have stated before, this puts the royalties in all of our names. The only reason my brothers agreed to give me the royalties is because this is the only thing in my mothers estate that requires any legal action or paperwork. They do not want to have to go to the trouble of doing any paperwork or going to any trouble at all for such a small amount of money. They have made it clear they are not willing to do any probate work or other legal actions.
There is still a checking account in my mothers name with my oldest brother as signer where the checks are being deposited and he is handling that account. I have been unable to get him to talk to me about that account and how much is in it and what he is doing with what is left in that account other than that he is paying what ever is left of her medical bills and once that is finished if there is any money left it will be divided among us. So I am trying to find out what the law says I need to do, or what kind of forms or papers I need to fill out and have my brothers do something as simple as sign and notorize them, to get this put in my name before I send anything to the oil company.
You seem to be saying that you think I might only need to get them to sign notarized letters saying that they are assigning their shares to me. Is this based on your knowledge of Okla. law, or is it only a guess? I don't mean to sound rude, but my brothers are already getting this money and they have made it clear that the only way I am going to see any of it is if I do what ever is legally necessary to get it out of my mothers name and into mine. They don't really care about the money and are perfectly willing to let me have the whole thing since it isn't much but they don't want to hassle with it.
I have some time on my hands right now and I am perfectly willing to do any research that is necessary to find out what Okla. law says but so far I have run into a blank wall and everyone tells me to get an Okla. lawyer to handle it including the oil company when I called them back to find out. I am currently unemployed and can not afford a lawyer. If you do not have access to this kind of information or don't have the time for it, can you tell me any sites on the internet where I might be able to find this information or put me in contact with someone who can help me know where to look for it? I am aware that this is going to take time since my brother seems to be in no hurry to settle the rest of my mothers estate (her bank account and bills) which must be done to show there are no debts. But I happen to have the time right now which is why my brothers suggested I take on this project. Thank you for your help.

 

[advisor10]

10-26-2001

DEAR SJC:

Go to the website www.naro-us.org (National Association of Royalty Owners) and click on the MESSAGE BOARD icon and post your message on the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF ROYALTY OWNERS board. A professional in that industry has probably come across the same situation you faced and can advise you on what to do.

If you get no response from that within a few weeks, send me an e-mail and I can try to find an attorney who specializes in oil-gas royalties to recommend to you.

I feel somewhat sorry for you in this difficult situation you are facing. It seems like the brothers are leaving you the leftovers of the estate (the $500 royalty check) when actually you could be entitled to a little bit more, if they would be open and honest and communicate with you about the true value of your mother's bank account and the entire estate. The reason they are keeping quiet is so that the can keep the estate information secret, whereas if they would do the ethically and morally correct step of filing to do an intestate probate, the bank account and other asset values and bill-paying information would be reviewed by the court to make sure that things were being done honestly, and IF THERE WERE ANY MONIES LEFT OVER TO DISTRIBUTE AMONG HEIRS, you would receive a share of this money (can't you use it, since you said you were unemployed?).

Just because this one brother was the co-signer on the account doesn't mean he should get all the money now that the decedent is dead.

However, it probably won't do you much good to complain to them, since they probably won't file for probate even if you ask them to.

SINCERELY,

[email protected]

 

[SJC]

Thank you so much for your help. I will take your advise. Also, thank you for your concern over my situation. The problem between my brothers and I has been on going throughout our lives. I have learned to accept how things are between us. It is mostly just a reluctance on their part to have anything to do with me. Also, the brother who is handling things has always been very slow to take care of details (which he considers this to be) and some what absent minded. But I took care of my mothers finances for many years when she was in Arizona so I am very familiar with her estate. What ever is left over can't be much and I am sure at some point in time I will receive a small check from my brother if there is anything left. Again, thanks for your help.