Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Sarah on August 10, 2008 at 8:24

Thank you Jim, it went thru probate in the home state (Texas) last summer. I'll have to look in to ancillary probates. Again, thanks tons.

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Permalink Reply by Sarah on August 10, 2008 at 16:12

Thank you for your replies.

Jim (McConnell) I don't have an attorney. The estate attorney said ethically she could not tell me anything because she is representing the Executrix.

The will states that I inheritated all assets as well as properties. I have nieces and nephews who inherited cars and other material things though.
Yes, my father owned mineral interests in other states.

The Executrix, (who happens to be my sister)sprung this on me at the beginning of summer, saying all we have to do left is to settle the oil and gas properties...and then she went to her summer homes as she does every year. So, I'm waiting for her to get back from Aspen or Maine. I will probably hear from her in a month after she gets her kids in school.

It doesn't make sense to me that by splitting the mineral interests, it would prevent the estate from having to go thru probate in other states. ( if that is even neccesary.) The Harris county clerks office told me that it is a very rare circumstance for that to have to occur.

I realize I probaby need to seek legal advice from an attorney of my own. I'm just waiting to see what she says when she gets back. Hoping I won't need an attorney. I'm not sure if I should be putting all this out there on the world wide web). (in case by some long shot someone happens upon this) Can anyone tell me if I can delete the entire discussion in a few days? Or do I just have to let it scroll off the pages. Would like to preserve the relationship even though it is more distant then I would prefer.

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Permalink Reply by WJP on August 11, 2008 at 0:36

You are heir to what sounds like a very valuable estate. Get off the internet, quit trying to rely on strangers for free legal advice - which is worthless - and consult an attorney of your own choosing. Nothing says you have to escalate your concerns into a dispute with the other heirs, just get your questions answered by someone competent.

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Permalink Reply by Sarah on August 12, 2008 at 10:28

Well, if it becomes clear that I need an attorney I will do that. And I agree, I do not want a dispute with heirs. I don't think it will come to that. But I value the relationship to much for that.
Bumping this up for Les B to throw his 2 cents in. Or anyone else who may have an opinion about it.
Also, the minerals in Texas were not even listed in my great grandfather's will that a land company out of Nacogdoches sent me.
I'm sure it was originally passed down by him because of other heirs.
How do you know if you have minerals if they aren't even listed in a will? Hopefully the inventory of my father's estate will list them, but I don't know since they were not in my great grandfathers.

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Permalink Reply by Charmine on August 12, 2008 at 10:42

Please let me know when you find the answer! I will try to follow. My great-uncle had about 10 other pieces of property that were in Nacodoches as well. I have a copy of the list of assets at the time of his passing, but I have no clue what happened to these properties other then the big piece in Shelby. I can't seem to locate a public records search online for Nacodoches County, Shelby has a good one. Even if it never comes down to me, it would be nice to know that maybe someday someone else will get a lease offer if the estate retained mineral rights on any other piece of property!

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Permalink Reply by Sarah on August 12, 2008 at 12:37

I know what you mean...some counties have all the info out there on the internet. I think I read that some, you can correspond with someone in records. If I were right there, I could go look myself. I did read on that fat blowhards discussion, that Thomas Scarbrock was kind and generous enough to share somewhere here about finding your way around the county clerks website. He said this:
Reply by Thomas R. Scarbrock
I ain't no expert at nothing but when I see others that claim to be experts talking down to others on this site that don't have the knowledge that they have, it makes me mad. I am just trying to take up for others that don't know their way around Sonris or Clerks websites. I am not a Armchair anything but am a person that takes up for the ones that don't understand their way around oil and gas.

I have no idea who Sonris but...may need to look that up!

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Permalink Reply by Sarah on August 13, 2008 at 13:29

Great advice...thank you Jim McConnell! Thanks for responding. We appreciate your advice!!! Have no idea what pleadings are, but that, I can find that out on my own. :) Thanks again for the help!

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Permalink Reply by Martin on August 13, 2008 at 14:06

I just completed a two state probate as executor and sole heir. Decedent was a Texas resident at time of death. He had financial accounts and real estate in Louisiana. The financial accounts all passed with the Texas probate. The real estate in Louisiana required an ancillary succession (La. speak for probate). The succession proceedings could not be started until the Texas probate was complete. The will was uncontested. The succession required about 8 months to complete. The total cost was less than $2000.00.

You should get a lawyer as previously suggested. In my humble opinion the executor is being too casual about her duty to the heirs for a timely completion of the probate. I was required to make only one court appearance in the Texas probate proceedings due to my role as executor. The probate lawyer dealt with the remainder of the proceedings. My participation was limited to answering the lawyer's telephone calls, retrieving account statements, getting the legal descriptions of the physical property and evaluations of land value, standing timber, and other known resources. This information is required for the estate inventory. The probate lawyer could have done this work. But my hourly rate is a lot less. I did not have to make an appearance in the Louisiana proceedings. I did have to hire a Louisiana lawyer for the succession. Forget about splitting the mineral rights -- get your own lawyer. The executor, IMHO, is too dismissive on this topic.

Again, get a lawyer asap to bird dog the Texas probate proceedings. Good luck! There is an old saying --"you never know a person's true character until you share an estate with them."

I am not a lawyer. But I have been seen in public with them on occasion. Your milage may vary.

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Permalink Reply by Dion Warr, CPL on August 13, 2008 at 13:43

Sarah:

Yeah, I agree with Jim on this one. Go find an attorney. It sounds like you need to impress upon the other parties that you wish to have an ancillary probate filed.

In other states, this might not be as crucial, and honestly, with the forced heirship issues largely settled in LA successions and probate in 1997, it may not be as crucial now in this state, but from what you have said here, this "split the minerals" plan doesn't pass the smell test IMO.

You might want to consider an attorney from the Arklatex with a firm that specializes in mineral law and probates, preferably with counsel admitted to the Bar in LA and TX.

Above all, do NOT sign any settlement agreements of any kind. If you're supposed to get all the minerals, and they have received cash, cars, etc., all you would be doing is diminishing your inheritance just to get along.

I hate to say this, but this is also a prime situation for some "person" or entity to pop out of the woodwork offering you "take these properties off of your hands". Probably at a firesale price, but how would you know?

Other questions to ask (or maybe your attorney should ask): Are these assets currently producing revenue? Are there offers to lease or buy these properties on the table? Exactly how much would it cost to file all of the appropriate paperwork?

Someone that I work with (a landman) was presented with this situation in recent years when her father died. (Fortunately, no squabbles). Her father was an old oil and gas landman for an independent oil and gas company in the Arklatex. He accrued many pieces of deals (overrides, minerals, and royalty rights) over his long career, as was custom for company landmen at that time. When he died, the final paperwork had to be filed in 67 parishes and counties all over the Arklatex, if not further, at considerable expense. But the estate had sufficent assets that it merited doing it all.

Finally, while I somewhat understand the apprehension of executor's counsel, the whole thing sounds really murky. The executor's job is to settle the estate, and provide a final accounting, not to wheel-and-deal you.

Get a savvy lawyer to turn on the lights on this one.

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Permalink Reply by Martin on August 14, 2008 at 10:00

I agree with Dion Warr's post. Get a lawyer as soon as possible. I agree this does not pass the smell test. The Executor must distribute the estate based on the will and the court's direction, if different from the will. The Executor can not make any decision on distributing the assets, unless provided in the will.

Please keep us informed as to your status. If your sister asks why you have a lawyer, tell her you love her dearly, trust her in all things but you do have a responsibility to your significant other and children (present or potential). Don't be nice. Be polite and do what your lawyers tell you. No one, including a sister, can argue with you acting on your on lawyer's advice.

I gotta tell you, your initial post kept bothering me, even after I made my initial post yesterday.

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Permalink Reply by Sarah on August 15, 2008 at 3:23

Thank you so much Martin and Dion Warr. I want to thank all of you for your replies. I can't even think about what y'all said I'm so preoccupied with my kids and a mil coming to visit.
I will say I was shocked and vert hurt when I got her email. They have plenty of money, my family has really struggled. I can't believe she would ask me to split these minerals with her. (saying, we're not talking about a lot of money) Right now I don't trust her in all things, she never gave me the will. I had to ask her for it 15 months after my father passed away. I had to ask her last year, well,...what is in the will? She just said, you get the money...so I had no idea I even had mineral rights. When I finally asked her for the will she asked why do I need it? Well,...I just wanted to have it to keep. And it's a good thing I asked for it because she had just emailed me the week before saying we'll have to pay her assitant. See, she has give over all Executor duties for her personal assitant to do. ( the accountant did quite a bit too, he's been paid). Halfway down the first page of the will it states that the Executor does recieve compensation. I know my father put that in the will, knowing my sister,(stay at home mom) has a personal assistant on staff, along with plenty of domestic help! But that part is beside the point.
Had I not asked for the will, I would have never known the part about the Executor only getting paid for reasonable out of pocket expenses. It's not that I don't want to give her assistant some money to thank her, just not pay a year and a half's on up worth of salary. Who knows when this will be finalized.
I'm hoping I can just do the inventory myself.
Anyway, I will keep ya'll posted on what happens. Thanks for caring.

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Permalink Reply by Martin on August 16, 2008 at 8:26

Get a lawyer! There is a legal copy of the will on file with the probate court. Your lawyer can get a copy of this plus anything else on file in the probate case. The estate is responsible for bearing the cost of probate. Your sister should look to the estate for compensating her assistant. The executor made the decision to employ the assistant. Check with your lawyer on this before you make a move.

My experience in Texas probate was that the property inventory for the estate had to have the legal description of all property being conveyed by the will, and a fair market valuation of each item. Personal items of minor value are exempt from individual listing. I suspect that the mineral rights will have to be identified as to the property they belong to and the estimated current market value of each set of rights.

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