Ask Me Help Desk - Can my sister make money off my mom's likeness after her death?

Thanks to all who posted. I guesss I just need to calm down a little. I mean, the fact that my sister is a total jerk is not exactly news to me, she's basically always been that way. Is it Peter Pan syndrome or narcissism, who knows? But basically she never thinks of anyone but herself, so she is very easy to ignore since all I have to do is avoid her on those very few occasions when she thinks of me and what I can do for her. I'm just a little concerned about other people being taken in by her and her cons, but basically I guess they have to look out for themselves, they are not my problem, especially when I tell them about this and they still like her, the way some of my elderly aunts do.
When I talk about her victims, I didn't really mean, boo hoo, she's posting my mom's picture on the WEB. I mean she posts things like the names and adresses of people that she reports are confidential drug informants, or about family medical problems that are hereditary in nature and could lead to somebody being denied insurance coverage. Things like that when I said we are being victimized.

Quote:

Originally Posted by George Leigh

Thanks to all who posted. I guesss I just need to calm down a little. I mean, the fact that my sister is a total jerk is not exactly news to me, she's basically always been that way. Is it Peter Pan syndrome or narcissism, who knows? But basically she never thinks of anyone but herself, so she is very easy to ignore since all I have to do is avoid her on those very few occasions when she thinks of me and what I can do for her. I'm just a little concerned about other people being taken in by her and her cons, but basically I guess they have to look out for themselves, they are not my problem, especially when I tell them about this and they still like her, the way some of my elderly aunts do.
When I talk about her victims, I didn't really mean, boo hoo, she's posting my mom's picture on the WEB. I mean she posts things like the names and adresses of people that she reports are confidential drug informants, or about family medical problems that are hereditary in nature and could lead to somebody being denied insurance coverage. Things like that when I said we are being victimized.

As far as turning in informants then the proper atuthorities should be notified that they have been compromised. They may get her with jail time. As far as medical history is concerned there are new HIPAA laws concerning protection of medical records. To that end she is committing a crime and also could be subject to a restraining order. SO its your choice to sit there and take it or be proactive.

Reference for hipaa:

Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Quote:

Originally Posted by George Leigh

Sorry Asking I got cut off on Saturday, I cancelled my internet and cable service and have to rely on a Wifi which is sort of touch and go.

OK everyone I'm convinced she made the change after my mom died. I have emails from her right after mom died where she appears not to know anything about those changes, later on she changes her story and starts mailing everyone copies of this form. It was a copy she was showing us, not an original, so it would be easy for her to take a copy, alter it, and then make a copy of her alterations to make it look like a copy of the original. And the funeral home did not know either. So I don't have to worry about that, she does.

I guess we are getting pretty far off topic of family law by now, sorry.

the estate was not probated. Mom owed no one, no credit cards, she had private insurance for her medical bills, her house was paid off. Her will stated that each child got an equal share. We were told we could save money like court and legal fees by not going through probate. Was that a mistake? Also is there some sort of statute of limitations on how long sister can wait before dragging us thru it again? The estate is closed, has distributed it's assets.

Basically we were the heirs, no one else has a claim so if we are ok with it and all the taxes were paid it's over, am I right in thinking so? From what you all have advised me no judge is going to listen to her complain about it wasn't fair and nitpick.

The only conclusion I have come to about your sister is that she is a spoiled brat. Has been one for too many years doing whatever she wanted to. Your parents treated her like a little princess and that obviously has gone to her head.

When my mother died 12 years ago, my sister called me up wanting to know how much money my mother left me. I had not seen my sister since I was 18 and only spoke to her on the phone maybe 2X in 30 years. I don't even know her address or phone number to write or call her yet, there she was calling me up wanting to know how much money my mother left me as my mother once told my sister that she was going to leave me "well off" when she died. Well, the joke was on my sister as my mother died with little or no money. The last laugh my mother had on my sister by the way after all the years of being treated mean by my sister my mother finally had her last laugh.

Brothers and sisters can and will be mean to the other family members. It's tragic to hear how spoiled rotten your sister is and what she has done. All I can say is that she has no taste and someday she's going to wake up dead if she keeps giving out confidential informant information over the internet. She will definitely learn the hard way. Just chalk it up to greedyness and no class.

As for your question about estates, you are correct. No Judge is going to listen to this matter now since the estate was not probated. To open an estate and have it probated costs a lot of money - more than you'd even imagine! I worked for estate attorneys and they get big bucks for handling the probate estate paperwork which is very complicated. The fees they collect are not of their own design, however, but set by the Probate Court. Say if your real estate consisted of several homes worth $750,000 total, and there were other assets to be probated, the attorney's fee would be a set percentage of this total estate. The attorney can collect thousands of dollars prior to the finalization of the estate with the court's blessing. You did the right thing in not having the estate probated.