I
icallaci
Guest
What is the name of your state? Nevada
I posted this in the Consumer Rights (Contracts and Guarantees) forum too, because I'm not sure which forum my question belongs in. I apologize if I shouldn't post to more than one forum.
My husband's sister died recently (March 21, 2003), without a will. Among her possessions, she had $1900 in American Express Travelers' Checks. A cousin was visiting in her home at the time she died. The cousin took these checks to a local AmEx office, showed a death certificate, and had the checks reissued in her own name. The cousin then cashed the newly re-issued checks. American Express says once the checks were re-issued, they cannot do anything about possible fraud unless we hire a lawyer. The whole estate isn't worth much, so hiring a lawyer would cost more than the estate is worth. But I hate to see someone get away with this kind of greed. My husband has a brother and another sister still living, so this cousin is not exactly next of kin. Is there anything we can do about this without hiring a lawyer?
Since the entire estate is worth less than $20,000, nothing is going through probate. My husband is in the process of filing Affidavits of Entitlement for his sister's mobile home, car, and checking account ($300). The only other assets his sister had were these travelers' checks.
Thanks,
irene
I posted this in the Consumer Rights (Contracts and Guarantees) forum too, because I'm not sure which forum my question belongs in. I apologize if I shouldn't post to more than one forum.
My husband's sister died recently (March 21, 2003), without a will. Among her possessions, she had $1900 in American Express Travelers' Checks. A cousin was visiting in her home at the time she died. The cousin took these checks to a local AmEx office, showed a death certificate, and had the checks reissued in her own name. The cousin then cashed the newly re-issued checks. American Express says once the checks were re-issued, they cannot do anything about possible fraud unless we hire a lawyer. The whole estate isn't worth much, so hiring a lawyer would cost more than the estate is worth. But I hate to see someone get away with this kind of greed. My husband has a brother and another sister still living, so this cousin is not exactly next of kin. Is there anything we can do about this without hiring a lawyer?
Since the entire estate is worth less than $20,000, nothing is going through probate. My husband is in the process of filing Affidavits of Entitlement for his sister's mobile home, car, and checking account ($300). The only other assets his sister had were these travelers' checks.
Thanks,
irene