Ferris, TX Estate Planning Law Firms & Lawyers

The judge will not sent you instructions; if you are represented by lawyer in the probate, he or she will give you instructions and when the probate is ready to close, you will be entitled to fees. The fees are statutory and are a percentage of a graduated scale, the amount depends upon the dollar amount in the probate estate.

To put it simply Someone, usually the primary heir, hires an attorney and files a probate action in the county where the deceased last resided. Then all beneficiaries are notified and the court appoints a personal representative After that all assets are gathered, debts paid and the rest distributed At times if real property is in multiple states multiple probates may be needed (one in each state where there is property) SO It does not happen automatically. Probate and attorneys can get expensive so the question is are there sufficient assets to worry about.. I advise you to gather all the information you can about your fathers assets and contact an attorney to discuss if it is worthwhile to file a probate action if your apparent step mom does not.

In Texas there are a couple of questions that need to be asked. Was the house community or separate property? Next are there children outside this marriage, such as a previous marriage? Since you say it is your mother and father, I will answer as if your sisters are also the product of this marriage. If the house is community property, it belongs to your mother. If the house was your father's separate property, it belongs to you children. She however, has the right to live in it all of her life. Whether her stay in the nursing home is sufficient to remove that right, is a whole different question.