Brooks, CA Personal Injury Law Firms & Lawyers

The personal representative named in a will, or the next of kin (you) has priority to open an estate. However, if the person who has priority does not open the estate, and another interested party (another heir, or a creditor [ie., the attorney's client]), can open an estate. Once another interested party opens the estate, the person having priority, or another interested person, can object to the appointment of personal representative, and ask the court to appoint the objecting party (or someone else) personal representative. If someone has a claim or lawsuit against your deceased spouse, they must sue the estate. If no one opens and estate, they can. I don't do much probate law (I'm more personal injury), but this is how I understand it to work.

As a general rule an attorney may not enter into a settlement on your behalf without your consent. An attorney does have a duty under the Michigan Rules of Professional Conduct to keep you informed of the progress of your case and to give you advice when advice is requested. Some attorneys have a Retainer Agreement that includes Power of Attorney and/or that gives them your permission to settle your claims on terms that they believe are in your best interests. You should check the terms of whatever you signed when you retained you lawyer and that will probably answer your question. Most settlements require the injured party to sign a Release that the defendant sends you. If you do not wish to settle, don't sign the Release. Of course, there is the situation, see above, where you may have given your attorney the power to sign for you. You can still attempt to disavow a settlement if it was not made knowingly or with your consent, but it is likely you'd have to hire new counsel to file a Motion with the court to cancel the existing settlement - and depending on the judge and the facts, you may, or may not, be successful.