Children & Wills

[saraswati007 0]

Hello all - It's been a while since we've been on the boards here. Life is going beautifully for us here in Boston - after a year of marriage, we're expecting our first child!

That's raised two questions:

1) Is a child born in the US, but of an English father, eligible for a British passport?

2) My hubby is now wondering about what to do regarding his (non-existent) will. He still has some assets, not a ton, but some in the UK. Would a will drawn up in the US cover British assets as well, or do people generally get a will written up in each country?

Hope all is well. Exciting to see all the 2010 interviews lining up. Good luck everyone!

[Brother Hesekiel 2,235]

You don't want a will.

You wanted a will back in the days of Jane Austen when lawyers like Mr. Darcy roamed the countryside, but in the 21st. Century you definitely want a Living Revocable Trust.

Short version on why: if hubby dies, estate goes into probate. What that means is that a money-hungry attorney asks you for $5K in order to take hubby's will to the court where a judge says: "cool . . . so ordered."

You can avoid that with a living revocable trust. Educate yourself:

Living Revocable Trust

Edited January 19, 2010 by Just Bob

[SunDrop 59]

Hello all - It's been a while since we've been on the boards here. Life is going beautifully for us here in Boston - after a year of marriage, we're expecting our first child!

That's raised two questions:

1) Is a child born in the US, but of an English father, eligible for a British passport?

2) My hubby is now wondering about what to do regarding his (non-existent) will. He still has some assets, not a ton, but some in the UK. Would a will drawn up in the US cover British assets as well, or do people generally get a will written up in each country?

Hope all is well. Exciting to see all the 2010 interviews lining up. Good luck everyone!

Whatever document you use to settle your affairs after your passing, you'll only need one in the country that you are resident at the time of your death. A US resident has no need for a UK will, as her laws can't govern on foreign soil. By all means, include all and any assets that are outside of the US (think of all those folk with swiss bank accounts! lol) but get it drawn up in the US.

Make sure that you guys have all the information about his assets available in an easy to find place. My parents have lived in 6 different countries, including the US, and my mother is terrified that my father will pass without straightening out his paperwork from a practical POV. He gets state pensions from every one, but there's no record of who pays them, who to contact if he dies. He also has various investment accounts in different countries, but again, how do we sort it all out when it's stacked piles high in his office. It's a nightmare! Consider that in the event of his death before you, you are not going to be in a fit state to start the necessary bureaucracy. Whoever helps has to be able to easily locate the necessary information to recover said UK assets so that probate can be finalised and you're not left totally strapped for cash because it's in limbo because of those blasted foreign assets being unfindable.

Heaven forbid, you should go your separate ways, but it is absolutely crucial for BOTH OF YOU that adequate provisions are made for your child that satisfy not only the laws of the country, but in if he remains in the US, also the State in which he resides. Different states have different probate laws and you don't want to be in a situation where you have to contest his will should anything happen to him. It's a gloomy, doomsday way of looking at things but this is coming from someone who's witnessed first hand the devastating effect that differing state laws have on separated families with dependent children...

Edited January 19, 2010 by SunDrop

[Justine+David 218]

To answer your first question, yes your child is eligible to receive a British passport

Somebody had asked questions about overseas births and registration, I suggest you do a quick search.

[Rebecca Jo 1,962]

You don't want a will.

You wanted a will back in the days of Jane Austen when lawyers like Mr. Darcy roamed the countryside, but in the 21st. Century you definitely want a Living Revocable Trust.

Short version on why: if hubby dies, estate goes into probate. What that means is that a money-hungry attorney asks you for $5K in order to take hubby's will to the court where a judge says: "cool . . . so ordered."

You can avoid that with a living revocable trust. Educate yourself:

Living Revocable Trust

Fitzwilliam Darcy was not a lawyer.

[Nich-Nick 3,353]

You don't want a will.

You wanted a will back in the days of Jane Austen when lawyers like Mr. Darcy roamed the countryside, but in the 21st. Century you definitely want a Living Revocable Trust.

Short version on why: if hubby dies, estate goes into probate. What that means is that a money-hungry attorney asks you for $5K in order to take hubby's will to the court where a judge says: "cool . . . so ordered."

You can avoid that with a living revocable trust. Educate yourself:

Living Revocable Trust

Not exactly on topic of the original question, but a comment about Bob's post from my experience:

I was executrix of my father's and husband's estates and I didn't find probate to be difficult at all. I prepared the paperwork myself using a book from the law library at the courthouse with the word for word documents in the appendix. The probate department suggested it to me. I filed and went to court by myself. It's just a matter how much of a do-it-yourself person you want to be. And it didn't have to be done immediately while you are deep in grief. You would, of course, have to know if your state worked the same way.

The key estate issue (before probate) was bank accounts, IRAs, life insurance etc where I was listed as beneficiary. (Ask at your bank about Massachusetts banking laws.) My friend who did the trust thing was amazed at how I got monies so quickly and asked how. I walked in each bank, said Mr. ____ died, here's the death certificate, I am the beneficiary, give me the money. Done on the spot. There is no legal wrangling if you keep your beneficiary lists current. (Note: Make sure the ex-wife isn't still listed on anything.)

As far as probate in the case of my father, only property had to be listed, because you can't have "beneficiaries" on property like you can on money accounts. So I had to list his house, estimated value of household furnishings, car, and some stock holdings. The probate judge ruled that I had the legal right, as executrix, to sell those properties and distribute to the heirs. Armed with that court order, I could sign whatever was required to sell or retitle the properties. That's about all probate was...getting legal permission to act on behalf of a deceased person to pay their bills and distribute their property holdings.

[Gemmie 142]

I was executrix of my father's and husband's estates and I didn't find probate to be difficult at all. I prepared the paperwork myself using a book from the law library at the courthouse with the word for word documents in the appendix. The probate department suggested it to me. I filed and went to court by myself. It's just a matter how much of a do-it-yourself person you want to be. And it didn't have to be done immediately while you are deep in grief. You would, of course, have to know if your state worked the same way.

I agree with Nich. My grandad passed away while I was in the US and unable to leave. This left my brother dealing with all of the paperwork. At first, he thought he could legally take over on behalf on my grandad using the probate process, but then he heard that seeing as there was no will, he had no more right than my grandad's children and myself - and also that he wasn't entitled to 100% of the estate. Without even thinking, he hired a lawyer to do the work for him because he said he didn't have the time (I think it was more a lack of knowledge).

That was in July, and we're still waiting for the lawyers to kick their butts into gear. They're constantly asking for paperwork that they already received, and their progress always seems to be "we're waiting on the banks/social services". My brother thinks everything is fine with that, but even after going through this immigration process and knowing a thing or two about D-I-Y vs. lawyers, I have a feeling we would've already been out of the financial mess if we filed the probate ourselves. I mean, they're still harassing him about information re. the whereabouts of one of the beneficiaries; isn't that what we hired them for? To deal with the names on the list and getting the estate through the bank?

[msu17 0]

I just asked about the baby question too. Follow my topics for the link to how to get the birth registered with the UK.

[saraswati007 0]

Just Bob - many thanks. I hadn't thought of that. Lawyers... sigh!

You don't want a will.

You wanted a will back in the days of Jane Austen when lawyers like Mr. Darcy roamed the countryside, but in the 21st. Century you definitely want a Living Revocable Trust.

Short version on why: if hubby dies, estate goes into probate. What that means is that a money-hungry attorney asks you for $5K in order to take hubby's will to the court where a judge says: "cool . . . so ordered."

You can avoid that with a living revocable trust. Educate yourself:

Living Revocable Trust

[saraswati007 0]

SunDrop - A thousand and one thanks for this reply. Extremely helpful. Hearing your own family's approach to this (six different countries!!) was very helpful as well. I dread to think that we might have to drag a lawyer in to help sort this out, but at least we're only dealing with small assets in two countries, not six!

I just read your post to my husband, and he's put "assemble asset information" at the top of his to-do list, which is about a thousand items long as it is.

Thank you!

Whatever document you use to settle your affairs after your passing, you'll only need one in the country that you are resident at the time of your death. A US resident has no need for a UK will, as her laws can't govern on foreign soil. By all means, include all and any assets that are outside of the US (think of all those folk with swiss bank accounts! lol) but get it drawn up in the US.

Make sure that you guys have all the information about his assets available in an easy to find place. My parents have lived in 6 different countries, including the US, and my mother is terrified that my father will pass without straightening out his paperwork from a practical POV. He gets state pensions from every one, but there's no record of who pays them, who to contact if he dies. He also has various investment accounts in different countries, but again, how do we sort it all out when it's stacked piles high in his office. It's a nightmare! Consider that in the event of his death before you, you are not going to be in a fit state to start the necessary bureaucracy. Whoever helps has to be able to easily locate the necessary information to recover said UK assets so that probate can be finalised and you're not left totally strapped for cash because it's in limbo because of those blasted foreign assets being unfindable.

Heaven forbid, you should go your separate ways, but it is absolutely crucial for BOTH OF YOU that adequate provisions are made for your child that satisfy not only the laws of the country, but in if he remains in the US, also the State in which he resides. Different states have different probate laws and you don't want to be in a situation where you have to contest his will should anything happen to him. It's a gloomy, doomsday way of looking at things but this is coming from someone who's witnessed first hand the devastating effect that differing state laws have on separated families with dependent children...

Just saw this thread as well. Thanks! We'll be down at the consulate soon after the big day!

I just asked about the baby question too. Follow my topics for the link to how to get the birth registered with the UK.