Hi my ex partner whom is the father of my 4year old daughter has recently committed suicide. He has a house which has been remorgaged, he has so much dept from bank loans and credit cards which neither me or his sister (his only other family) knew anything about. His sister is now his next of kin and as he has left no will she doesn't know what to do with all his depts. The sale of the house might just cover all the depts but she is scared that she might end up with a legal bill. How can she get around this is it better to just close the door on the house and let it be reposessed is there any way around it that she and his daughter can benefit for the house, any suggestions welcome... thanks DIANA

Depending on what state you are living in. If there is no will, the state will decide who is in control of the property. Without a will she may Not be the one who is put in control...

Assuming your sister is named the executor by the courts - she herself should have no personal liability for any of her brother's debts. She will have to pay off as many of his debts as possible using the assets of his estate (for example by selling the house). The estate assets are also used to pay the expenses of the estate, such as any probate costs or lawyers fees involved. But again, she needn't worry about any personal exposure.