probate

[wales01man]

Help please
My wifes mother who she has not had contact with for years has just died leaving no will one of her brothers is dealing with things and is going for probate he seems to think that what is there will be his if he swears an affadavit with a solicitor saying her mother wanted to leave some of the family out of proceeds of the estate.When my wife said to him that the estate would be divided equally and asked for the solicitors name to give him all the family dtails he as good as said no what can we do to make sure he doesnt omit some of the family from the probate forms.
Further he is clearing her possessions from her room at the nursing home and has divide up whats there taking most for himself is the nursing home allowed to reakease her property before probate
Any advice would be welcome
THANKS

[wales01man]

Re: probate

bump any answers?

[enaid]

Re: probate

Hi WM there are rules that must be followed when there is no will the info is on here

http://www.adviceguide.org.uk/englan..._intestacy.htm

Hope this helps a little Enaid x

[bluebottle]

Re: probate

First and foremost, you need to speak to a legal professional specialising in probate matters. Contact your local Law Centre who can provide you with free advice. Where a person has died without leaving a will, they are said to have died intestate.

Your brother-in-law would have had to clear your mother-in-law's belongings from her nursing home room as it is almost standard procedure in most nursing homes to remove personal effects as soon after death as is practicable. As long as your brother-in-law stores your mother-in-law's effects until probate is completed, that is fine. However, the reality is that you get the sort of scenario you describe in your initial post.

It is possible that your mother-in-law's estate may have to be determined at a probate court hearing, which is why I have advised that you speak to a legal professional at your local Law Centre.

[wales01man]

Re: probate

Thanks Bluebottle waiting to see how this develops all she is getting at the moment are plenty of lies and contradictions keeping an open mind on where it goes appears he knows very little about the law and dying intestate my wife has offered to help with sorting it all as i said we will wait and see

[bluebottle]

Re: probate

Thanks Bluebottle waiting to see how this develops all she is getting at the moment are plenty of lies and contradictions keeping an open mind on where it goes appears he knows very little about the law and dying intestate my wife has offered to help with sorting it all as i said we will wait and see

I wouldn't wait for things to develop. Your wife and her other siblings need to seek professional legal advice asap before this situation gets out of hand. Law Centres provide free legal advice. I am a great believer in "Nothing ventured, nothing gained" and "If you don't ask, you don't get". If no will exists, then your mother-in-law's belongings will almost certainly be subject to probate. No division of the belongings can take place without a Letter of Administration from the Probate Court. Contact the Probate Registry for your area and find out if they have any record of your mother-in-law's estate being registered. To find the Probate Registry for your area, go to http://www.justice.gov.uk/courts/pro...ate-registries and click on the link to the District Probate Registry or Probate Sub-Registry nearest to where you live or your mother-in-law lived.

[wales01man]

Re: probate

THanks again bluebottle wife is going to apply for probate with the brother sorry just been told wife is applying for letters of administration but another problem arises the brother says her mother said one of the brothers is not to have a share of the estate im sure he cant say that he reckons he can sign an affadavit to stop the brother this is like an episode of jeremy kyle

[bluebottle]

Re: probate

If Letters of Administration are being applied for, this would indicate that your mother-in-law's estate has been registered with the appropriate District Probate Registry or Probate Sub-Registry. Once the Probate Court has issued the Letters of Administration, your wife and her siblings are then free to dispose of your mother-in-law's estate. As for what your brother-in-law is claiming, I would be inclined to seek appropriate advice from a legal professional at your local Law Centre, where free legal advice is available.

[wales01man]

Re: probate

HELP URGENTLY NEEDED
Carrying on with my thread it now seems the brother is using the deceaseds credit card after the death what is the legal position

[Nikolai]

Re: probate

re Probate
Using a credit card that belonged to someone who has died is not legal. Why don't you contact the credit card company with your concerns? I think they'll soon put a stop to this. The brother could find himself in serious trouble.

[bluebottle]

Re: probate

Has the credit card company been informed of your mother-in-law's demise? If not, that needs to be done as a matter of priority. It is likely that the credit card company will require a copy of the Death Certificate in order to action the cancellation of the credit card. As for your brother-in-law's use of the credit card, it is, I am afraid, an offence under Section 2(1) and Section 6, Fraud Act 2006 to use the credit card of a deceased person for your own benefit or that of another. At best, he is looking at a fine of up to £20,000, or 12 months' imprisonment or both, in respect of both offences, at worst, 5 years' imprisonment, in respect of the offence under Section 6, and 10 years' imprisonment, in respect of the offence under Section 2(1) of the Act.

Section 2(1), Fraud Act 2006 creates the offence of Fraud by False Misrepresentation. Section 6 of the Act creates the offence of Being in Possession of Articles for Use in Connection with Fraud. Your brother-in-law needs to be stopped before he is stopped by the police. If that happens, it will be too late to resolve the matter informally.

[wales01man]

Re: probate

Thankyou again Bluebottle your answer is as i thought but did not know we spoke to the banks call centre and they said without a card number they could not take action we are going to bank tommorrow to obtain statements we suspect its barclay card as she banked with them we now her he has threatned my sister in law and her family that they are involved with his fraud looks like police will be called

[bluebottle]

Re: probate

Thankyou again Bluebottle your answer is as i thought but did not know we spoke to the banks call centre and they said without a card number they could not take action we are going to bank tommorrow to obtain statements we suspect its barclay card as she banked with them we now her he has threatned my sister in law and her family that they are involved with his fraud looks like police will be called

Unfortunately, things have now reached a stage where it is very likely the police will be called in. Make sure you have a copy of your mother-in-law's Death Certificate with you when you attend the bank tomorrow. It is likely they will ask to see it and take a photocopy. As for your sister-in-law and her family, I know this sounds terrible, but it may come to the point of her having to report her own husband to the police for her own and her children's protection. You certainly need to talk this over with your wife as your sister-in-law and her family need help.

[wales01man]

Re: probate

thanks again my sister in law is not married to the brother its the wifes sister she is vulnerable and has had grief from another brother over the years that no person shoul;d go through the truth cannot be told she was not allowed to contact us for years and only traced my wife through her daughter of her own back we are so sickened by what happenned its hurting all we can hope is sorting his actions is taken out of our hands and we can get back with her sister and family who we have not seen for over 20 years her daughter is so upset she has never known this side of her aunts family this will changeBluebottle i cannot thankyou enough for you advice

[bluebottle]

Re: probate

You're most welcome, Wales. I hope things get sorted out and that your wife and her sister can pick up the pieces and catch up the 20 years they have missed. Sometimes, it takes incidents like this to right an injustice which your sister-in-law and her family certainly seem to have been living with. I wish them every best wish for the future.