Implications of a Missing Will in New Jersey

January 7, 2025

Can’t Locate the Will in NJ, Then What?

Implications of a Missing Will in New Jersey Your lone surviving parent has passed away, and you have the painful duty of inventorying their belongings and looking for a will. Your loved one spoke to you about their intentions for their belongings after they passed, but did they leave a will, and what if you cannot find one? Your loved one may have expressed their wishes about their property and personal belongings when they pass, but those oral communications are not enough to fulfill those wishes. You need a legal document that has all the formal legal requirements of a will to pass your loved one’s assets and personal belongings to their chosen heirs. When you want your life possessions to go to specifically chosen beneficiaries in New Jersey, you must have an estate plan that accomplishes that desire.

Legal Presumption of Missing Will Revocation in New Jersey

New Jersey law presumes a lost or missing will evidences the intention of the will-maker to revoke the will. Though the will’s disappearance may have many explanations, such as the deceased misplaced it, someone destroyed it, or an accident destroyed it, the law presumes the maker changed their mind and destroyed it. However, anyone may rebut the legal presumption that a lost or missing will resulted from the deceased’s revocation of the will. The revocation presumption is rebuttable with credible evidence proving that the deceased did not revoke the will, meaning they did not intentionally rip it up, burn it, or otherwise dispose of it with the intention of invalidating it.

Systemic Approach to Locating a Missing Will: From Personal Spaces to Professional Resources

Finding a missing will may not be easy, but there are some practical things you can do. First, thoroughly search the deceased’s home in places that may logically hold the will, such as a desk, filing cabinet, or table that has personal papers. Another common place for a will is a safe or lockbox. Less obvious places may be bookshelves, bedroom dresser drawers, kitchen drawers, or attics and basements in stored boxes. You might even search for outdoor structures like storage and gardening sheds.

Other options include contacting the deceased’s lawyer, financial adviser, or banker. Either one of these may have discussed estate planning with the deceased and can give you clues to locating the will. An attorney may have the original will or a copy on file. Another option is to locate the executor. Consider asking the deceased’s relatives if they are or know who the executor is. You can make assumptions that the executor is someone close to the deceased and a trusted person, like a child, spouse, sibling, or parent.

Another possibility is to check with the Surrogate Court in the county where the deceased resided. The Surrogate Court handles probate, estate administrations, and guardianships and may have information about a missing will. If the decedent had a living trust, check the trust agreement for a possible lost will provision that instructs the trustee what to do if the will associated with the trust is lost or missing. The provision may allow distribution according to the terms of the trust, but a court would have to approve the provision and distribution.

New Jersey’s Inheritance Order When the Will is Lost

When all else fails, the decedent’s estate will be distributed to existing heirs in the order of priority according to intestacy laws. Without a will, the decedent’s estate is administered as if there never was a will, according to New Jersey law. When someone dies without a will, the estate goes to the deceased person’s heirs by intestate succession, beginning with a surviving spouse and children. The entire estate may go to a surviving spouse when there are no children and to the children if there is no surviving spouse. If neither exists, the estate goes to the deceased’s parents, and then siblings if no parents survive the deceased.

Unfortunately, the laws of intestacy may not fulfill the deceased’s wishes. They may have had strained relations with a child or children, parents, or siblings, and they may have intentionally left those relatives out of their will.

Procedures for Distribution of an Estate when the Will Cannot be Found in NJ

In an estate administration without a will, the Surrogacy Court will appoint letters of administration to an estate representative, typically a spouse or child (or other close relative), so that the administrator can gather the estate, inventory it, pay creditors, prepare a final accounting, and then distribute the net proceeds.

These letters give the administrator of an intestate administration the authority to open bank accounts on behalf of the estate, sell or collect property belonging to the deceased, hire professionals to do estate taxes, pay attorneys to help administer the estate, and anyone else necessary to inventory and distribute the estate. The Surrogacy Court oversees the intestate administration and must approve the inventory, accounting, statutory fee payments, and distribution that closes the estate.

Contesting Intestate Administration of a Missing Will

However, someone with knowledge of a valid will or mistakes in the estate administration may contest the intestacy. So long as they have evidence of a will, they may object to the intestacy administration. Sufficient proof may be a copy of the will or testimony from an attorney who prepared the will or another person who saw or knew of the will from the deceased, showing them the will or referring to it.

Walkthrough of Proper Will Storage and the Importance of Regular Updates

Missing Will Solutions for Estate Distribution New Jersey A missing will can result in the denial of a deceased individual’s wishes for their lifelong accumulations of personal and real property. Avoiding this dilemma takes awareness of where you keep your will.

Your original will is safest in a safety deposit box or with an attorney, who likely prepared the will for you. The will is far less likely to be lost or destroyed in financial institutions and attorney offices. A home safe is a popular place to keep a will, too.

You might also give the original will to your executor, trusted friend, or close family member, but at least distribute copies to the beneficiaries or let trusted individuals know the will’s location.

Another safeguard is the Surrogate Court’s registry. Registering details about your will’s location with the court secures the will’s location and is a likely place for heirs to look when the will is not among the deceased’s personal belongings.

Wherever you keep your will, remember to periodically review it and update it to reflect the changes in your life and wishes for your possessions after you are gone. A missing will may not deprive you of your wishes, but an outdated will may, especially when beneficiaries are no longer in your life or personal property for individual bequests no longer exists.

Simplify Estate Administration When Dealing with a Missing or Lost Will and Speak to Our NJ Legal Team Today

Dealing with the loss of a loved one is difficult enough, but when estate matters become complicated due to a lost, missing, or destroyed will, you will need professional help. An estate law and probate attorney at Chamlin, Uliano & Walsh can help you locate a missing will by investigating the deceased’s legal, financial, and other contacts that may lead to clues of the will’s whereabouts. We can also access the registry for information. Moreover, if you must go through an intestate administration probate, our experienced lawyers are highly adept in the application of laws and procedures for probating the estate. We can explain the steps, your duties, and what happens to the estate. Our team prepares the necessary paperwork to begin and end the process while making any necessary court appearances with or for you.

Whether you are the estate administrator or an individual contesting the probate in Point Pleasant, Middletown, Freehold, Wall, Colts Neck, Long Branch, Red Bank, Howell, Manasquan, Toms River or elsewhere in Monmouth and Ocean County, our accomplished team of estate attorneys can represent you in court, appearing before a judge to argue the appropriate motions, presenting evidence to support those motions, making oral arguments, and answering the judge’s questions about the estate or contest. Our assistance can be invaluable to you when probating an estate or determining your legal options in lieu of a death without a discoverable will.

Our professional help, combined with a compassionate, personalized approach, can allow you to rest assured that one burden is lifted off your shoulders, especially as you face obstacles that can seem insurmountable when you are unfamiliar with probate and grieving. Call an estate lawyer on our team today at 732-440-3950  or contact us through our online form to discuss your case.



Categorised in: Estate Planning, Wills & Trusts