[WSBAPT] potential heir - what obligation does attorney have?

Fri May 21 15:56:40 PDT 2021

I had this similar issue recently. First thing I did was order the birth certificate of the child if the mother will not share.  If the son is listed, then you have an obligation to find the child.
If not, then I don’t see you have any obligation.  In my case, the son was not listed as the father.  Then, the mother verified on social media, another person was the actual father.
When I posted about my issue, I was given some information on obtaining paternity verification – if you want that information, I can find it from a few months back.

Dalynne Singleton
Gourley Law Group
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From: wsbapt-bounces at lists.wsbarppt.com <wsbapt-bounces at lists.wsbarppt.com> On Behalf Of Philip N. Jones
Sent: Friday, May 21, 2021 3:51 PM
To: WSBA Probate & Trust Listserv <wsbapt at lists.wsbarppt.com>
Subject: Re: [WSBAPT] potential heir - what obligation does attorney have?

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

On May 21, 2021, at 3:00 PM, Maren Benedetti <Maren.Benedetti at adamslawyers.com<mailto:Maren.Benedetti at adamslawyers.com>> wrote:

I have a client whose son recently died. He had very little property, a mobile home and a very small bank account. There was no Will, so everything to surviving mom. Client’s daughter is helping her and they have asked me to prepare the affidavit of inheritance for the mobile home and they were intending to gift it to the son’s long time friend and current tenant in the mobile home.

Yesterday the daughter received a text from another friend of the son who informed her that she and the brother had a child together 28 years ago but paternity was never established and there is no evidence that he ever knew about this child or met him. She provided the name of the purported child and place where he lives.

Do we have any obligation to 1) track this guy down, 2) find out if he is actually the son?

Maren Benedetti
Attorney

ADAMS & DUNCAN, INC., P.S.
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