Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Ohio

My grandfather recently passed away leaving my grandmother. Everything the two owned together was in both of their names. What legal process would she have to go through in order to get everything into just her name? Does this have to be done? And will she need an attorney to do so? Also will this involve probate court? Thank you so much.


Asked on 12/26/11, 6:40 am

1 Answer from Attorneys

Nancy Fioritto Patete Nancy Fioritto Patete, Esq.

If your grandparents owned all their assets jointly, those assets belong to her today. This kind of automatic transfer happens just with married couples. She will need to inform the financial institutions to remove your grandfather's name from the accounts. If they owned a house together in survivorship, she should file an affidavit with the county recorder's office. She would not need probate court for these transactions. Most importantly, now that she is widowed, she should decide what happens next with her estate. For this reason, it would be to her benefit to consult with an attorney for estate planning.

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Answered on 12/26/11, 7:14 am


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