When is a Will read after the elderly dies?

Diamons, you don't say who the executor of the will is. The guardianship expired when your step-grandfather died, his estate is administered by his executor. I was POA for my bachelor uncle, but he named his lawyer as executor because he knew there would be family disputes otherwise. We asked for the will to be checked in case any funeral arrangements were included in the will, but otherwise I never did see a copy of the will until the estate was divided. I've never met anyone who had the will "read" like they show on Hollywood movies. The executor must administer the will as it is written, and he must inform the beneficiaries in writing. If you aren't named in the will, you aren't informed. Does your brother have a copy of the will?? Even if your cousin took the copy in the house the lawyer who drew up the will often keeps a copy on file. Have you talked to him directly? You also need to be aware that some estates take quite a long time to be settled, and a week is really not that long.

Lawyers have to uphold the law or they can be disbarred, even small town lawyers. Be aware though that an executor can pay themselves for the work they do, and I'm sure the lawyer will pay themselves the maximum allowable. (You might want to check with the bar association to see how much that is) Also any debts and taxes etc outstanding will also have to be paid from the estate. If your brother is the sole beneficiary the lawyer should have no problem keeping him up to date on the progress of the estate.

Dia - the attorney / executor will be required to do a posting in the newspaper as to debts of the estate. Usually this is done at the same time the executor posts the "Letters Testamentary"to the probate court to open probate - I say usually as it makes it 1 trip to the courthouse if it's actually done in person but if this is all being done on-line the newspaper notice may be a week later. You all want to be on the lookout for this. Most places have it so that the notice has to run 3 times.

Why this is important - if your worried about lawyer being evil - is that there is no reason why your brother or you or whomever has paid for anything for the step grandfather cannot file their own claim against the estate. It is a debt of the estate. So if say you paid for yard work that totaled $ 500 last year & were not reimbursed, then you fill out a form to place a claim for that $ 500 (you want to have documentation to establish validity but usually do not have to include it in the initial filing at probate court only need it when hearing happen) against the estate. What is good about this is that the court will usually notify anyone who files a claim as to hearings scheduled for probate court OR if not they give you the docket # so you can go on-line to see when they happen. Then you make sure you get yourself to court that day. This will really cut down on any hanky-panky from happening. Often family get upset as they feel they didn;t get their due but didn't file anything to make this happen. Probate - I think - is all open court too so you can be there and then for a small fee pay for all court documents.

It's as simple as calling the lawyer involved. I had to do this when my mother's sister died in another state. They called right back and answered my questions.

They're not all excited to get involved in something sneaky, either.

First they have to find the original Will, not a copy. If no Will is found, the court will appoint a fiduciary. The fiduciary has to wait for all bills against the estate to be paid. This can be as little as 6 months or as long as two years. After that the fun/fight begins.

Go file a claim at Probate. Even if you don't have " papers" that cousin took. File your claim, there's no other help except the courts at this point. Might help if you know who your step grandfather used as lawyer, or any other witnesses to support your claim.
Also, find out your state's inheritancy chart--I think stepchildren are in line before nieces.

He actually used the lawyer that I spoke about in an earlier posts.

I have checked our local newspaper, There hasn't been anything about probate of step-grandfathers house. This lawyer was my step-grandfathers lawyer. If I call the court clerk could she advise me how to get brother down there to file a claim when it goes in probate?

This hasn't been posted in our local paper yet.Can my brother go to the courthouse and file a claim against the estate before it is put in probate. I'm afraid the lawyer (who was executor) isn't going to put the house in probate. He wrote up the paperwork to have my brother thrown out. The police thought it had to be a court order but we were told the paper wasn't onfile at the courthouse. The police officer that took the paper out to my brother told him he needed to see the county attorney. He had never known anyone getting kicked out of a house in 24 hrs. My brother took care of our step-grandfather, I have a greedy aunt that wanted that house. I do no want to see my brother cheated out of what was willed to him. This is the same lawyer that made the will. Would the courthouse have a copy of the will. My cousin stole all my brothers papers and the will was in it. I have proof she took the papers. She contacted me on facebook, she admits they went into the house, neighbor let them in. I think my brother should file charges against them.

Stop trying to figure this out on your own and tell your brother to get a lawyer. If you don't trust anyone in your town, go to the next town or nearest city. You are talking about a house, so there are big $$$ to lose if you don't get this sorted out... well worth the legal fees.