My son died suddenly and he has 5 cars and a minor son that is 3 yrs old. He has never been married. Who transfers the titles so we can sell them?

Did he have a will and was an executer appointed yet for his estate?

Whomever has standing and authority as set forth by a judge.

A close relative needs to apply to Probate Court to be appointed executor of his estate. That person can then sign titles, etc.

It may likely be that the son is to recieve all the proceeds from the sale of the cars minus any expenses depending on what State you live in. Also is the childs mother alive still ?

If there is no Will which was left by your Son generally with his Lawyer that appointed a person as his executor of estate ( The person who's appointed to administrate the estate of a deceased person ) noting in most cases were there is a will then there will be a executor of estate then I believe it is up to the Next of Gin which in this case would be his Father or Mother due to him not being married to seek a Judges ruling to be appointed as the executor of estate.

Practical responsibilities include gathering up and protecting the assets of the estate, obtaining information in regard to all beneficiaries named in the will and any other potential heirs ( note if no will this will be the heir or family members ) , collecting and arranging for payment of debts of the estate, approving or disapproving creditor's claims, making sure estate taxes are calculated, forms filed, and tax payments made, and in all ways assist the attorney for the estate (which the executor can select).

If there is no Will which was left by your Son generally with his Lawyer that appointed a person as his executor of estate ( The person who's appointed to administrate the estate of a deceased person ) noting in most cases were there is a will then there will be a executor of estate then I believe it is up to the Next of Kin which in this case would be his Father or Mother due to him not being married to seek a Judges ruling to be appointed as the executor of estate.



This statement is not correct. The OP mentioned that her son had a child. The next of kin would be the child. Not the parents. Being that the child is too young to make decisions then it may fall upon the childs mother to make decisions for the child such as the sale of the cars. Most of this is going to depend on where the OP's son lived.

This statement is not correct. The OP mentioned that her son had a child. The next of kin would be the child. Not the parents. Being that the child is too young to make decisions then it may fall upon the childs mother to make decisions for the child such as the sale of the cars. Most of this is going to depend on where the OP's son lived.

A person's next of kin (NOK) is that person's closest living blood relative or relatives.

Please note the above statement , meaning the parents can be NOK's due to the child age.

Also

" fall upon the childs mother to make decisions for the child such as the sale of the cars "

Wrong

He was never married to the mother of the child , which means unless he left the cars to the mother in a will, she has no legal entitlement to them or any other assets of his estate , though she is the Minor mother the executor of estate can override her stopping the sales or even not give her the means to be able to sell them ( See Below ).

It falls down to the executor of estate to make plains as to how the estate will be given to the child.

If the executor of estate wishes to with help from family , the estate can be held onto until the son is of legal age to claim it.

This returning me back to my other statement " I believe it is up to the Next of Gin which in this case would be his Father or Mother due to him not being married to seek a Judges ruling to be appointed as the executor of estate. "

BTW here's some meaning of Next of Kin legal.

" The blood relatives entitled by law to inherit the property of a person who dies without leaving a valid will, although the term is sometimes interpreted to include a relationship existing by reason of marriage. "

" ) the nearest blood relatives of a person who has died, including the surviving spouse if married.. 2) anyone who would receive a portion of the estate by the laws of descent and distribution if there were no will. "

Note they both state Relatives not relative as in not just the Minor ( 3 year old son ).

Since we dont know where the son of the OP died we have no idea what jurisdiction would rule over the situation. Given that in normal circumstances the property would pass to the child / children then it stands that the child (his 3 y/o son) would inheirit the property / estate own by the father at the time of his death. If that is so then the minor child can not make the decisions nor sign for any such properties. Thereby the gaurdian of the child (the mother ) would have the responsibility of making the decisions for the child.

If you have some other evidence to prove your point then do so. Your next of kin theory doesnt hold water until it comes to medical decisions. As far as the cars or other properties that will be subject to distribution that is up to the jurisdiction the person passed away in (legal resident).

Your argument stands for medical reasons only until we know where this happened at. We strive to get it correct in this forum.

First, cdad is correct the son is the NOK, but because he is underage he cannot be executor. Second, cdad is not wrong. Whileit would appear that the mother and father were not married, there is no statement either way. But given that the son is probably NOK, then the son's legal guardian (the mother?) would be first in line to be executor.

Bottom line here is that all we know is the son died leaving real property. To dispose of or transfer that real property an executor has to be appointed. That is really the ONLY answer we can give the OP without more info.

In some states there are procedures for abbreviated probate where as here there is nothing but a few vehicles to deal with. It may be as simple as filing an affidavit that the decedent left only specific property and the creditors have all been paid.