Dealing with the estate on death

jonesMUFCforever

OP SERIOUSLY you need paid for advice here.
For starters if the life policy was not in trust or assigned to the mortgage then the funds become part of his estate and his creditors can claim pro rata to cover the debts.
Do not assume debts die with him.

I urge you to contact a solicitor.

bouncydog1

I would definately recommend that you seek professional advice from a lawyer used to dealing with this type of thing.

Although you will get a lot of help on here, you cannot rely on it, so if you do something wrong regarding the administration of the estate you are liable.

If you get legal advice and it is wrong you then have recourse to the lawyer who gave it.

Whilst protecting your mother's future is a primary interest, if your father had debts and assets then they will have to be paid. Far better to get it properly sorted so that your mum has peace of mind.

chattychappy

Yes, see a solicitor. This is bread and butter work for them. Provided you give them an outline (as you have done here) they should be able to quote you a fixed fee or at least a reliable estimate. You shouldn't need to fear that every phone call will add to the final bill. If you don't like the attitude of the first solicitor you meet, go to another. There is no need to instruct a solicitor until you are clear about costs (including "disbursements", ie expenses) and they must confirm these in writing. If still opaque, go elsewhere.

It's a tough life being a high street solicitor right now. Not much work, plus ever increasing insurance costs. But many are their own worst enemy. It's a buyer's market - so get the help you need.

Good luck.

Cool_Hand_85

Thanks for your advice everyone. I have decided to contact a solicitor. Tying myself up in knots isn't going to help my mothers grieving process, my grieving process or the rest of my family. I was probably trying too hard to step into his shoes and assume i can cover everything.

Once i have the information, i will try and post it on this thread in the hope that someone else can benefit from it.

Thanks again, you've probably saved me from myself!

John_Pierpoint

My father pulled exactly the same trick with me (aged 21) my mum (aged 50) and my sister (aged 16)

Dad was 50.

He had debts the equivalent of 35K in today's money plus a house and mortgage, fortunately protected by a mortgage protection policy.

Admittedly this was over 40 years ago - my mother failed to confide in me and tried to battle through on her own. These were the days when parents did not talk to their children about sex money and death.

As dad had not bothered to make a will, we both became administrators of his estate, so legally I had to sign paperwork that I did not really understand.

The whole mess was given to a solicitor. His helpful advice was
"Downsize and send your daughter out to work".

In the event mum went out to work, we stalled the creditors - including the solicitor - and eventually about 10 years later the two/three of us managed to finish off the debts. We were given a lot of help by the 1970's inflation. Had it been 10 years later with Thatcher's 3,000,000 on the dole, things might have worked out very differently.

Give your mum time to come to terms with her situation, while you dig out the true situation; but presumably in her 50's, she needs to know the financial facts of life and have a chance to rebuild her life.

Our solicitor was OK on legal matters but not knowledgeable on what a Widow with a dependent child could claim in the way of tax reliefs and social security. [Quite frankly my mother's personality was improved by this adversity, prior to the death she was a middle aged menopausal empty nester, with a not wonderful relationship with her teenage daughter.]

I moved out to become the "rent a room" lodger of a friend of mine.

Anyway good luck and what ever happens you can always double check what you are told, by asking on this forum.

opinions4u

John_Pierpoint wrote: »

My father pulled exactly the same trick with me (aged 21) my mum (aged 50) and my sister (aged 16)

Dad was 50.

He had debts the equivalent of 35K in today's money plus a house and mortgage, fortunately protected by a mortgage protection policy.

Admittedly this was over 40 years ago - my mother failed to confide in me and tried to battle through on her own. These were the days when parents did not talk to their children about sex money and death.

As dad had not bothered to make a will, we both became administrators of his estate, so legally I had to sign paperwork that I did not really understand.

The whole mess was given to a solicitor. His helpful advice was
"Downsize and send your daughter out to work".

In the event mum went out to work, we stalled the creditors - including the solicitor - and eventually about 10 years later the two/three of us managed to finish off the debts. We were given a lot of help by the 1970's inflation. Had it been 10 years later with Thatcher's 3,000,000 on the dole, things might have worked out very differently.

Give your mum time to come to terms with her situation, while you dig out the true situation; but presumably in her 50's, she needs to know the financial facts of life and have a chance to rebuild her life.

Our solicitor was OK on legal matters but not knowledgeable on what a Widow with a dependent child could claim in the way of tax reliefs and social security. [Quite frankly my mother's personality was improved by this adversity, prior to the death she was a middle aged menopausal empty nester, with a not wonderful relationship with her teenage daughter.]

I moved out to become the "rent a room" lodger of a friend of mine.

Anyway good luck and what ever happens you can always double check what you are told, by asking on this forum.

Have you sold the movie rights yet?