Dishonest Personal Representative Intestate

[canOspam]

Jurisdiction

Washington

My Father and Mother passed in 2016, no will, I have 1 Brother and he lives in the same town as my Parents so he petitioned to be personal rep and hired a local atty, which at the time seemed reasonable but my Brother and Girlfriend (now wife) took things whenever and have been unjustly enriching themselves from the get-go, he stopped communicating and blocked my number half way in. The estate included a house which he sold nearly a year ago, several vehicles, multiple safes that my Brother took which were full of guns, cash and valuables, I know because I helped put things in there after my dad passed and before my mom died... he put the vehicles in his name and has been driving them whenever he wants, one is a custom Roadster built by my Dad and is gut wrenching to see pictures posted online of him driving and letting others drive this car which he had nothing to do with while my Dad was alive. I have asked for an inventory from the law office he hired since the house has been sold and it's been nearly 2 years. Does the estate attorney only represent him even though we are both beneficiaries and the cost comes from the shared estate? and the roadster he assumed for his own, I never agreed to him keeping, I also have nothing of monetary value to speak of I've been blindsided, as the unexpected death of my young parents (61 & 66) devastated me, he won't even go to the cemetery with me and put a marker on my Parents grave, the estate can more then cover these expenses! I was taken advantage of by my greedy heartless brother in the worst moment of my life...what's my recourse? Thank you!

 

[adjusterjack]

Does the estate attorney only represent him

To a great extent, yes, especially if your brother is feeding him information that he has no way of disputing.

what's my recourse?

That's easy. Hire your own lawyer and go after your brother tooth and nail through the courts.

If you aren't willing or able to do that, he gets away with all of it.

 

[canOspam]

Thank you adjusterjack, I feel foolish for not seeing the deception sooner but grief will cloud your better judgement and he is the last of my family and I really wanted to believe him, the betrayal was like another death and now I'm trying to recover whatever I can. I needed that confirmation on who the lawyer represented because when I spoke to the legal assistant about what was going on and informed her that I've had no contact in over a year, she was dumbfounded and said that I should give them my accounting of things because they were there to make everything 50/50...it's obvious my Brother has lied about involving me and he gave her a partial inventory that was completely inaccurate, this was just last week, which means he never kept an inventory of anything because now the house and all contents are gone and he couldn't produce a final accounting...at this point I need someone absolutely in my corner. Amazing how hard you can try to prevent the inevitable from happening, I hate having become a typical case of a greedy relative willing to forgo any integrity and forget about the values I know my Parents instilled in us...I guess it only mattered to me. Sad. All of it.

 

[zddoodah]

My Father and Mother passed in 2016, no will

So...neither of them had a will? If so, that largely negates the significance of which one died first and knowing how much time separated their deaths.

Does the estate attorney only represent him

Yes.

what's my recourse?

Seek to have your brother removed as personal representative of the estate and ask that the court surcharge him for any assets he took improperly. This is not a good do-it-yourself project; hire a local probate attorney.

 

[arminius]

The statute of limitations is ticking with the possible exception of fraud, and I don't know anything about Washington, but, after two years you could be severely limited as to your relief. However, these types of events in life can often fog the mind serving to incapacitate and individuals thought process and toll the period in which a action can be filed. Another consideration would be Washington Fraud Statutes. Some jurisdictions allow for 3 years from the date of fraudulent actions or more depending on when and how the fraud was concealed. You should get on this right away.

There is also a Federal cause of action: Interfering with an inheritance or gift. Very expensive litigation.

Arminius.