Father Passed \ No Will \ Unmarried Partner Wants Executor

1. We aren't allowed to give legal advice here.

2. That said, why haven't you hired your own attorney to help you swim through this murky legal stream?

Neither my brother nor I can afford a lawyer.

Also my question is a general legal question, not asking for advice about what I should do. I just would like to know in general does an estate need to be opened up before the trust documents are allowed to be drawn up?

We don't know! Depends on where you live and other factors. Consult Legal Aid.

With all the above comments about legal advice, I would take on the executorship and hire an attorney out of the estate.

It will help to use the correct terms when Googling.

When there's no will, the person in charge of distributions is not called an executor. They're called an administrator. Even if the lawyer's wording is executor, it's technically incorrect and is probably an instance of someone just not updating the form correctly.

I have no idea what you mean by "open up the estate". Create a bank account in the estate's name? Go through probate? Something else?

Houses are worth big bucks and, even if they're falling apart, the land they sit on is also valuable. For many people, it's the most valuable asset they own/can leave to someone else.

For that reason alone, get yourself a lawyer who has experience with trusts and estates and is admitted to practice in your jurisdiction. Your questions have some complexity to them and there's a lot of value at stake.

This is not the time to go cheap on this stuff.

Hire a lawyer who specializes in family law/estate law.

Re: tsarstepan (Post 7282389)
Neither my brother nor I can afford a lawyer.

Sure you can. He'll be paid out of the estate.