Fernandina Beach, FL Estate Planning Law Firms & Lawyers

As executor, you are responsible for notifying all of your father's creditors and debtors of his death, collecting all of his assets and any money or goods owed to him, paying off all of his bills including end-of-life expenses and funeral expenses from the assets of the estate, determining and paying all taxes and estate taxes due also from assets in the estate, and then distributing the remaining assets according to the terms of his will. If your mother co-owned each of the accounts with your father, she is probably entitled to the money. If not, she will probably have to pay it back or accept it in exchange for something else she was bequeathed in the will. Most state grant surviving spouses a pre-set sum or percentage of an estate to help them pay bills, etc. until the estate is settled.

It depends on what your aunt's Will states. If the Will says to the three brothers "per stirpes," this means that your father's share would go to his heirs. If the Will has language which requires the brothers to survive her, then the devise to your father would lapse. In Florida, a provision in a Will purporting to penalize any interested person for contesting a Will or instituting other proceedings relating to the estate is unenforceable.

The POA comes from your mother. If she is not competent, she can't give it to you. Even if she is competent, if she doesn't want to, then you can't get it. If she is incompetent, you can petition the court to become her guardian and conservator based on your step-father's unreliable care. However, it may be expensive, particularly if step-dad fight it. The court may also be reluctant to allow an 18 year old to make the decisions, but if you prove that you are mature enough to handle it, it may be a go.