[WSBAPT] notice to heirs

[Philip N. Jones]

I agree with Eric.  In your case, the heir will receive nothing, unless the will is contested, which is probably unlikely. As a result of the fact that the heir will likely receive nothing, that would seem to reduce the “reasonable effort“ that you need to make.
Eric is correct that heir search companies like to review probate petitions that show heirs/devisees with an unknown address. But if the probate involves a will, the heirs will receive nothing, and the heir search companies will not try to find those people.
If you have an heir/devisee who is actually going to receive something, and the address is not known, I agree with Eric that you should not file your probate petition until you have done your due diligence. By doing so, you will lessen the risk that an heir search company will find the missing heir and get them to sign one of their contingent fee agreements.
When I am looking for an heir, I often determine that the least expensive way of finding them is to hire a genealogist. They tend to be less expensive than the other methods.
Keep in mind that there are two kinds of heir search companies. There are the ones who look for probate filings that have missing heirs, and then they find those people and talk them into signing a contingent fee agreement.  And then there are the heir search companies that want to be hired by attorneys and they charge the estate a fee for their work.
Phil Jones
Portland, OR

I

Philip N. Jones
Duffy Kekel LLP
Portland, OR
pjones at duffykekel.com
(503) 853-1482 cell

On Mar 17, 2021, at 3:10 PM, Eric Nelsen <eric at sayrelawoffices.com> wrote:


I typically advise that the PR must exercise “due diligence” meaning follow up on any available clues as to location of the heir, and ask anybody they know of who might be in contact with the heir. But the efforts need only be “reasonable” and I judge that mainly by evaluating how much money the heir is likely to receive, and how much it would cost to take additional steps like hiring an investigator. If the heir is likely to get, say, $30,000, it seems like the Estate could spend a few hundred dollars attempting a skiptrace with an investigator. BUT that investigation could also happen after appointment, so the PR has access to estate funds to pay for it. Then once the heir is located, give them notice.

The other factor I think about is the likely consequence if the heir shows up later—what difficulty it might present for the estate. Usually that’s not an issue because nothing the estate does is likely to prejudice the heir. So if we can’t get a good address for an heir right away, I’d still file with “address unknown” and follow up afterward.

Keep in mind that heir search companies do monitor filings and they’ll track down and approach missing heirs and ask for a cut in exchange for letting them know about a possible inheritance. If client wants to avoid that possibility, best to do more due diligence at the beginning so you don’t have to identify an “address unknown” heir. If the heir is going to get a big chunk of money, then I think if at all possible, do an heir search or hire an investigator before opening probate to try to locate them, to avoid this issue.

Sincerely,

Eric

Eric C. Nelsen
Sayre Law Offices, PLLC
1417 31st Ave South
Seattle WA 98144-3909
206-625-0092
eric at sayrelawoffices.com<mailto:eric at sayrelawoffices.com>

Covid-19 Update - All attorneys are working remotely during regular business hours and are available via email and by phone. Videoconferencing also is available. Signing of estate planning documents can be completed and will be handled on a case-by-case basis. Please direct mail and deliveries to the Seattle office.

From: wsbapt-bounces at lists.wsbarppt.com <wsbapt-bounces at lists.wsbarppt.com> On Behalf Of Diane J. Kiepe
Sent: Wednesday, March 17, 2021 1:35 PM
To: WSBA Probate & Trust Listserv <wsbapt at lists.wsbarppt.com>
Subject: [WSBAPT] notice to heirs

Hello all – I know that the law states you must notify heirs of a decedent when probate is opened – every now and again I struggle on how much effort is enough effort – especially in this day and age where people are so transient and I am hearing more and more about folks going to parts unknown, living on the streets, etc.  I have now received a potential project where I believe there is an actual missing person’s report on file with the police of the county.  The state The person is only an heir, not a beneficiary under the Will.  Would be curious of your thoughts.

Diane J. Kiepe

Diane J. Kiepe
Douglas Eden
717 W. Sprague Ave.
Suite 1500
Spokane, WA  99201
djkiepe at depdslaw.com<mailto:djkiepe at depdslaw.com>
509-455-5300

***Disclaimer: Please note that RPPT listserv participation is not restricted to practicing attorneys and may include non-practicing attorneys, law students, professionals working in related fields, and others.***
_______________________________________________
WSBAPT mailing list
WSBAPT at lists.wsbarppt.com
http://mailman.fsr.com/mailman/listinfo/wsbapt
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://mailman.fsr.com/pipermail/wsbapt/attachments/20210317/aa2f3450/attachment.html>