Is there a time limit to meet with clerk of court after death of spouse (Kelly: lawyers)

[kelly237]

Is there a set length of time allowed before starting the estate paperwork ??

[skaternum]

You need to have the death certificate in hand. Otherwise, you should be able to get started on probate right away.

[kelly237]

Originally Posted by skaternum

You need to have the death certificate in hand. Otherwise, you should be able to get started on probate right away.

Thats not what I meant..If I have been procrastinating and dealing with the death is there a deadline.
I don't need everyone's guesses..Just input if you have knowledge in this area.

[saturnfan]

If there are no assets in the spouse's name and all valuables are titled to transfer on death, there may be no need for legal process.

Check with an estate attorney to see if you need to do anything.

[Pruzhany]

If there are no assets in the spouse's name and all valuables are titled to transfer on death, there may be no need for legal process.

If the will is pretty straight forward, then you'll just be throwing money in the wind to pay probate fees to the court for nothing. Just have enough death certificates on hand to convert all joint accounts to your name.

In North Carolina, probate fees are 40¢ per $100.00 of property subject to court costs of probate are limited by statute to $6,000

North Carolina Probate Law, Lawyers, Law Firms Lawyer, Injury, Attorney in Usa North Carolina (http://www.helplinelaw.com/article/usa-north%20carolina/340 - broken link)

But to answer your question, usually 30 days.

[ragdolls4me]

Kelly, I don't know the answer to your question but found this NC Estates brochure at the Estates Division of the Wake County clerk of court website: http://www.nccourts.org/Forms/Documents/735.pdf I didn't read the whole thing but it may be helpful to you.