What Documents Should Surviving Heirs/Legatees Search For After The Decedent Has Passed?

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There are several.

THE FIRST and most important would be his Will/Testament.

THE SECOND document to be searched for would be a Notarized Declaration, wherein the decedent had named a certain person to handle the disposition of his remains. In this document, he would make specific declarations concerning certain things, such as:

1. Naming a particular individual to handle all decisions concerning which funeral home to handle preparation of his body for burial;
2. Which cemetery to bury him in;
3. Name the person to be in charge of the funeral service;
4. Location of the funeral service;
5. Music selections for funeral service;
6. Who to preach funeral sermon;
7. Select family member or friends to speak at funeral service;
8. And last, a very important one – to cremate his body or not.

(This Notarized Declaration will save the family from having to decide all these things, and lessen the chance of their getting into disputes regarding disposition of remains).

THE THIRD item to be searched for would be a Power of Attorney/Mandate.

Why Is A Power Of Attorney Needed If It Expires Upon The Death Of The Person Granting It?

Yes, you are correct, it does. However, if the decedent left a Will/Testament in statutory form, which did not name/designate an Executor, and the Power of Attorney was a DURABLE POWER OF ATTORNEY, it would be useful in the probate proceedings. A “Durable Power of Attorney” contains a provision that in the event of the Grantor of the Power of Attorney being legally interdicted, the Grantor of the Power of Attorney should be appointed as guardian of the interdicted person.

To clarify a point, in Louisiana an Interdiction is the legal process by which a Curator is appointed by the Court to handle the legal affairs of someone who, due to his mental and/or physical impairment, cannot manage them himself.

If the decedent did not name an Executor in his Will/Testament, when it is admitted to probate, his designation of a person to be his Curator in the event of his Interdiction, is used by the Probate Judge to give that person first preference in the selection of an Administrator for the estate.

THE FOURTH item to locate would be a copy of deed to house and lot, second home, vacation home, and any investment real estate.

Why Do You Need These Deeds?

These deeds will contain the legal description of the property(ies) owned by decedent. These legal descriptions are used in the succession’s Detailed Descriptive List, in the Petition for Possession, and the Judgment of Possession.

They are also used to check the Clerk of Court’s records to determine if any mortgages, judgments, liens are recorded against the property(ies).

The deeds will also show the date the item of property was acquired and the decedent’s marital status when acquired. This will establish if that property is his separate or community property.

THE FIFTH item to locate would be a copy of title to any vehicles registered with the State of Louisiana.

Why Do You Need Vehicle Titles Or Registration Papers?

They are needed because they contain the title numbers and/or registration numbers which will be required on the Detailed Descriptive List, the Petition for Possession, and the Judgment of Possession.

In some succession, it may be advisable to dispose of one or more of these state registered vehicles without waiting for the completion of the legal process of the succession to be finalized – which could take from several weeks to several months.

For example: There may be someone wanting to purchase the vehicle but needs it “RIGHT NOW”. Or maybe there is insurance due to be paid on it and the succession does not have the funds to pay for it. In such instances, the State of Louisiana allows the use of a Department of Motor Vehicles printed Affidavit form to effect an immediate transfer. This Affidavit, when signed by the surviving spouse and each heir/legatees will effect an immediate title transfer. It contains the Title and Registration number of the vehicle and the names and signatures of the surviving spouse and the heirs/legatees. This is presented to the State by the buyer to effect an immediate transfer.

THE SIXTH item to locate would be a copy of recent statements of checking and savings accounts. CDs, IRA accounts, Retirement accounts, investment accounts.

What Use Is Made Of These Documents?

These documents will contain account numbers and contact information for use by the Executor/Administrator or the heirs/legatees to effect transfer of these account proceeds to the succession or the heirs/legatees. These account numbers are also used in the Detailed Descriptive List, the Petition for Possession, and the Judgment of Possession.

THE SEVENTH item to be located would be a copy of funeral, monuments, mausoleum, cemetery bills, any medical bills relating to decedent’s last illness, current regular monthly bills such as insurance, utilities, credit cards, and evidence of any other debt.

Why Do You Need These?

These must all be listed in the Detailed Descriptive List. Whoever is handling the succession must locate and examine each of these to make certain they are timely paid before some insurance policy lapses, or some utility gets turned off, etc.

THE EIGHTH item to be located is actually a cluster of three – decedent’s death certificate, his marriage license to current wife, and the birth certificate of each of his children.

What Use Is To Be Made Of These Items?

This information is necessary to compose the Affidavit of Death and Heir ship, the Petition for Possession, and the Judgment of Possession. It readily establishes who the decedent’s heirs are, and who will acquire title to his estate assets, unless otherwise disposed of in a Will/Testament.

THE NINTH item to locate is a Safety Deposit Box key.

What Use Is This Key?

This key is used to open his safety deposit box at the bank, if he has one. People keep valuable documents and items here. Several of the items covered in this article may be found in this box, such as deeds to land, certificates of birth and marriage, stock, bonds, annuities, certificates of deposit, IRAs, 401Ks, jewelry, coin collections, etc. These items of value must be listed on the Detailed Descriptive List, Petition for Possession, and the Judgment of Possession.

THE TENTH item to be located is also a cluster of items – stocks, bonds (US and Corporate), annuities, debentures, deferred compensation agreement.

What Benefit Are These Items In Handling Succession?

Once again, most of these items will contain account numbers by which they can be identified when listed in the Detailed Descriptive List, Petition for Possession, and Judgment of Possession. Additionally, they will contain the contact information to which correspondence should be addressed by the Executor/Administrator, heir or legatee to effect transfer of title when the succession is completed.

THE ELEVENTH item to be located would be any life insurance policies.

Are Life Insurance Policy Benefits Normally An Asset Of The Succession?

No, not usually. The named beneficiary of a life insurance policy is paid those benefits outside of the succession proceedings normally.

However, sometimes the decedent’s estate is the named beneficiary. In that instance, the policy benefits become property of the succession and must be so listed in the Detailed Descriptive List, Petition for Possession, and Judgment of Possession.

Here again, the policy will normally have contact information on how to locate and deal with payment of those benefits to the succession.

THE TWELFTH item to be located would be one indicating decedent had an interest in some business enterprise.

How Will This Document Be Used?

Some people are pretty secretive about their business affairs, even with their spouse and children. So, a search may uncover that decedent was a “silent partner” in any business organized as a Partnership, LLC, or a small corporation.

The uncovered document may reveal not only his percent of ownership in the business, but also may contain an agreement called a “Buy-Sell”. It would set out the procedure to follow in the event of the death of one of the owners of the business to effect transfer of decedent’s interest to the other owners. It will also set out a procedure to value the decedent’s interest to be conveyed.

THE THIRTEENTH item to be located would be any type of collection the decedent may have possessed.

What Type Of Collections Do You Mean?

Collections could be of coins, stamps, jewelry, art, tools, firearms, etc. They could be located in the home or in a safety deposit box at the bank. If the collection appears to be valuable, it should be appraised by some expert person knowledgeable in that field.

The collection and its appraised value would be used in the Detailed, Descriptive List and in the Petition for Possession. The collection would be listed as an asset in the Judgment of Possession.

Certainly not every decedent will have every one of the listed documents to search for. However, the spouse, heirs, legatees should satisfy themselves by using this list of “search for” documents/items as a checklist from which to search.

In closing, it is to be understood that the sooner the search for the above items is finalized, the sooner the succession can be completed and the assets delivered to the proper legal owners in accordance with the Judgment of Possession.

For more information on Documents Needed After Death In Louisiana, a free initial consultation is your next best step. Get the information and legal answers you are seeking by calling (225) 228-3450.