[WSBAPT] is a successor of small estate entitled to bank statements and/ or wage stubs?

[Andrekita Silva]

Law Office of
F.ANDREKITA SILVA
______________________________________________________            
 
                                                                   
October 2, 2018
Listserve,

Have any of you ever had the successor of a Small Estate request bank  
statements from the bank of the deceased or wage stubs from the  
employer of the deceased?

I have a client (she is successor and sole beneficiary) who has  
requested these items from her late son's bank and from her late son's  
employer. Both bank and employer have refused to provide this  
information. Each claiming confidentiality. Bank did send her a check  
with amount they say they held (after receiving small estate affidavit).
 
Employer provided information regarding manager for employer provided  
stock options, manager for 401(k), manager for Health Services  
account, and last paycheck (addressed to “Estate of” with wage stub  
with year-to- dates on it    (just like employee would have received  
in his lifetime but sent to my client’s home).   They did all this  
before she ever provided her small estate affidavit. She just called  
and said “son died, I’m mom.”

​I have looked at the statute. It says 

“..  any person who … has possession of any personal property  
belonging to the decedent … which …  personal property is an asset  
which is subject to probate, shall pay such indebtedness or deliver  
such personal property, or so much of either as is claimed, to a  
person claiming to be a successor of the decedent upon receipt of  
proof of death and of an affidavit.”
 
They have each said they will only release this information if client  
produces Letters Testamentary and/ or Letters of Administration. They  
say small estate affidavit is not enough.  The point is, that my  
client would like to avoid the cost of filing a probate action since  
it’s a small estate.
 
I really don’t know what their true concern is.  Is it really  
confidentiality or is it that they think the wage stubs and/ or bank  
statements are not the property of the deceased, but their own  
property  (like the question of a client file when it comes to  
lawyers).  Caselaw is very clear that the term “property” is extremely  
broad, and that it includes property that is tangible and intangible.   
I can’t believe they don’t think wage stubs/ bank statements are  
property.  Is it that a bank statement is not “an asset which is  
subject to probate”?
 
Are the employee wage stubs and the employee bank statements  
reasonably considered the property of the deceased or is this property  
of the bank and/ or employer? 
 
My client has a couple different reasons for wanting this  
information.  However, since both bank and employer have been so  
resistant, she is starting to feel distrustful, like they are trying  
to short-change her.  Although I assume that this may have more to do  
with bureaucracy than dishonesty, I can’t help but to wonder, how can  
a successor would protect themselves from dishonesty if they can’t  
receive documents necessary to verify that assets were properly   
disbursed?
 
So, I’m wondering if others have dealt with this, what the basis would  
be for withholding this information, and whether my client be  
successful in securing this information if this issue were placed  
before the court?
 
Thank you in advance for any thoughts you might have on this.
 
 
andrekita
Law Office of F. Andrekita Silva
1325 Fourth Avenue, Suite 2000
Seattle, Washington 98101
206-224-8288
www.seattle-silvalaw.com
 

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://mailman.fsr.com/pipermail/wsbapt/attachments/20181002/55cfafc9/attachment.html>