Deceased has no siblings.
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Deceased has no siblings.
A friend asked me to be her personal
representative, she has died, I have been told
that I have to notify her existing family of
her death because she had no siblings. I that
so?
Asked on July 16, 2018 under Estate Planning, South Dakota
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 5 years ago | Contributor
The personal representative "manages" the estate, including paying any claims against it, and seeing to the distribution of assets. The PR has to carry out the deceased's wishes about burial or organ donation; notify potential heirs (those who may inherit); find all the assets (money in the bank, vehicles, investments, real estate, etc.); submit claims for life insurance; notify (in the proper way set by your state) creditors of the deceased that they passed away and can submit claims against the estate; pay any unpaid final expenses (e.g. funeral home); do the paperwork to probate the estate (or if it's sufficiently small an estate, do whatever alternative is provided in your state for small estates); pay any claims allowed against the estate; take actions or pay amounts necessary to preserve assets pending resoluation of the estate (e.g. pay insurance, taxes, etc. for real estate; have repairs made to houses so they don't continue to deteriorate); then at the end, distribute any remaining money or assets to the heirs and beneficiaries. The PR does NOT have to spend his or her own money doing this, but uses estate funds for any expenes, etc.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.