Illinois Probate Law Articles

In some families, loans and monetary gifts are presented to the children and often times this may lead to dispute if not kept equal. If it's not clear whether the money is a loan or a gift, conflicts can arise if the parent dies and their estate enters probate. If it's not in writing, the beneficiaries are left to figure it out on their own, or the court must step in and decide. 

In Iowa personal representatives in probate cases are administrators (if there is no will) and executors (if there is a will). Personal representatives have fiduciary duties to act impartially for the benefit of creditors and beneficiaries. Under Iowa Code, claims of creditors receive priority over distributions to beneficiaries.

Undue influence means a person substitutes his or her intentions for those of a person making the will, making the will reflect the wishes of the influencer. In Iowa, if another heir or beneficiary suspects that someone may have exerted undue influence on the person who died (the decedent), they may bring an action in probate court.

Trusts are common tools used in estate planning, and other situations which require a third party to take control of an owner’s property to be distributed to a third party. While creation of trusts involve several unfamiliar legal terms, the basic idea of a trust is to allow someone else to hold onto your property for the benefit of a third person. For instance, you may have heard the term “trust fund baby” where wealthy parents have created a trust, managed by a bank or other financial professional, for their children to receive payments.

In this article, we discuss what happens if you believe a will or trust in your family is a fraud. We cover the following questions: Suspicion of fraud, How do people forge testamentary documents?, How do I investigate potential forgery for probate fraud litigation?, Standing and Grounds for Probate Fraud, Red Flags Found within Forged Documents, Red flags in the document’s signature, and Accomplices in a Trust Forgery.

In some families, loans and monetary gifts are presented to the children and often times this may lead to dispute if not kept equal. If it's not clear whether the money is a loan or a gift, conflicts can arise if the parent dies and their estate enters probate. If it's not in writing, the beneficiaries are left to figure it out on their own, or the court must step in and decide. 

In cases in which probate is required, the executor of the estate or the next of kin cannot take the actions necessary to administer the estate without the authority granted by the probate court. Probate is a complicated process that requires executors to prepare forms, meet deadlines, keep records, generate reports, submit filings to the court, and serve notices to creditors, heirs and local newspapers.

When a family member dies and the appropriate relatives begin to go through the probate process it’s normal to have a lot of questions. Confusion over first steps, what comes next and what the process entails can increase stress during an already stressful time. One question that can arise if the deceased person owned debt, often in the form of credit card debt, is whether the close relatives are personally responsible for that debt. It’s not uncommon for creditors to begin calling family members in an effort to collect on the deceased person’s debt.