<p>Just re- read thread and saw that there is a written agreement drafted by bil’s attorney wife and that it does not have a lump sum repayment clause. So, bil’s actions seem quite illegal to me. If sil does not want to make this lump payment - she needs to hire an attorney who will file the paperwork to get an injunction to freeze the assets of the estate. But - going down that road will impact all of the siblings. I still believe that while bil is in the wrong, she might be better off paying him off and having that monkey off her back.</p>
<p>I think H and the other sibs need to stick together and tell their brother just to split the money and send out checks.</p>
<p>I think it was a big mistake that MIL didn’t require 2 signatures on big checks. </p>
<p>Quite agree - way too much power in the hands of one sibling - particularly when he is one of several.</p>
<p>I think it maybe legally correct to contest but If I were SIL I pay BIL the loan back. His financial situation changed. I know Chase closed my credit line in 2008 or 2009 when It didn’t want to expose to any more home equity loans.</p>
<p>How much money is this loan? If the amount is very large and BIL is tired of carrying it, sis can try to find another way to finance it if she doesn’t want to pay it all now out of her inheritance. Bringing in an attorney will likely permanently sour the relationships in your family – it seems like a nuclear option. Is that what sis wants? Do ANY of you want that?</p>
<p>It sounds like BIL was trying to be helpful but it does seem reasonable to have sis pay him back in light of his difficulty in selling his house. I’d personally stay out if it and let BIL and sis work things out on their own.</p>
<p>^I’d agree. Technically, BIL is out of line but he helped the sister and now she has the money to pay back to help him out. If it were me, I’d just pay back instead of fighting it out. </p>
<p>This is definitely one where you need to stay out of the fray. Don’t take sides and have the parties resolve the issue among themselves. </p>
<p>Just remembered. A long time ago, we loaned a relative money to help him buy a house. A few years later his mother sold her big house and first thing she did was to pay us back. We didn’t ask for it.</p>
<p>I’ve never understood this concept of “putting in X’s name”. I am not an attorney so I have no real knowledge of this, but people seem to transfer assets around by “putting it in someone else’s name” as if that were a legal action. Is it? Or is it legally a gift that comes with a verbal agreement to re-gift? Is the bank account in the siblings’ names, or is it in the name of your MIL and the siblings together? If the account is in the siblings’names, then is there any estate, since you say there’s no property? I’m full of questions tonight. </p>
<p>One example of this is to have a bank account or a CD that is payable upon death to a specific individual or to several people. When the person dies - the funds are distributed - no probate.</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/free-books/avoid-probate-book/chapter1-1.html”>http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/free-books/avoid-probate-book/chapter1-1.html</a></p>
<p>"Payable-on-death bank accounts offer an easy ways to keep money—even large sums of it—out of probate. All you need to do is properly notify your bank of whom you want to inherit the money in the account or certificate of deposit. The bank and the beneficiary you name will do the rest, bypassing probate court entirely. It’s that simple.</p>
<p>This kind of account has been called the “poor man’s trust.” And it’s true that a (free) payable-on-death account designation avoids probate just as well as an expensive, lawyer-drawn living trust would. </p>
<p>As long as you are alive, the person you named to inherit the money in a payable-on-death (POD) account has no rights to it. If you need the money, or just change your mind about leaving it to the beneficiary you named, you can spend the money, name a different beneficiary, or close the account."</p>
<p>Yes, that happened for us when Sis-IL died–she had several accounts that were POD–payable upon death. The institution in our case cut equal checks for each of the two people on the account–H and his brother. </p>
<p>Ok…think of it this way.</p>
<p>BIL loaned SIL money when she needed it…and he had it to loan. </p>
<p>Now…after the estate payout, SIL will have the money, and BIL actually is a little cash short.</p>
<p>Perhaps your SIL should consider paying off the loan…in other words…helping her brother when he is short on cash, just like he helped her when she was short on cash.</p>
<p>It works best in simple situations - the deceased is leaving an account to be split in equal shares between 2 or 3 people - or all to one person. It gets more convoluted when the deceased leaves an account that is POD to one person - with the understanding that the funds be split among numerous people in varying amounts. That could get messy.</p>
<p>Isn’t POD the same as beneficiaries designation.</p>
<p>Technically, from a legal perspective what your BIL is doing would not be defensible in a court of law - he is mixing apples and oranges. Your SIL’s debt to your BIL is legally separate and distinct from your SIL’s legal right to receive payment pursuant to laws governing jointly held accounts/assets. How are the assets titled? That is important as in some cases the assets pass directly to the survivor. If the assets are cash/securities she has an immediate right to them and could walk into the bank or brokerage firm and simply withdraw them. </p>
<p>Basically, your BIL is attempting to change the terms of his agreement with SIL which provided for “monthly” repayment of the loan. Payment terms are “material” in a contract and cannot be unilaterally rewritten by one party. Her right to receive her share of assets held jointly in her name is absolute and is not subject to offset unless that right is specifically set forth in her agreement with BIL.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, your SIL will have to make the decision whether she wants to expend the funds to challenge BIL in court. Unless the facts are different from what is stated, she would win, but she would have to absorb the attorney fees to do so. Perhaps a united front by all family members would provide the needed pressure to get your BIL to do the right thing.</p>
<p>I’m not convinced that it’s “the right thing” to stand on the terms of the loan when SIL knows BILs finances have changed since he made the loan. </p>
<p>Could they perhaps find some middle ground where she gives a lump sum out of some of her inheritance and accelerates repayment? That seems more like “the right thing” to me, and more likely to preserve family harmony. </p>
<p>I am confused about how the bank account is set up. Are all siblings on the account with deceased mom as some kind of joint account? If that is the case, your SIL should be able to walk into the bank and withdraw her amount as a cashier’s check or in cash right now (and probably should, given the situation). If it is POD situation and siblings are equal beneficiaries (with no joint owners), and he just had POA, then you should notify the bank immediately that she is deceased, and they should freeze the account until someone can present paperwork proving they have executor status over the estate. If her account is just joint with the BIL… well, then legally it is probably ALL his money if she didn’t have a will, and he can do whatever he wants (take it all).</p>
<p>THIS is why people should have wills that name executors. Anyone reading this who doesn’t have one, go take care of it this week. Estate law is really complex, and a do it yourself approach often does not have the intended impact (and doesn’t even save anyone money in the long run).</p>
<p>^^^^^ #36 is spot on.</p>
<p>@Himom - in the context of my post above I define “right thing” as what BIL should be doing pursuant to the terms of his legal agreement with SIL. I think what might preserve family harmony is an entirely different thing. I agree that it would be beneficial and less stressful to work it out, taking into consideration the generosity of spirit that was originally shown by BIL. But from a pure legal perspective SIL is not required to do that and is entitled to her distribution.</p>
<p>BIL should not be using his position as executor for the estate as leverage to renegotiate the unrelated loan deal with SIL.</p>
<p>However, it does seem like both SIL and BIL have been overspending, including on their kids’ college costs*. First post indicates that SIL needed to take a parental loan (from BIL) to pay for a kid’s college, while reply #18 indicates that BIL spent a lot of money on his kids’ college, but the kids are not self-supporting after graduation. That SIL is not willing (or even eager) to pay off the loan in a lump sum indicates that her personal financial situation is not so great otherwise. Perhaps it is not surprising that, when both family members are short on money, they fight over the inheritance.</p>
<p>*The kids were not eligible for full tuition scholarships at Alabama or other schools?</p>