Legal representative assignment

[Jack]

My brother passed away without a will and an insolvent estate. Social Security has informed me that he had a disability underpayment that they would like to distribute to his next of kin, and that would be me since I am my brother's only living relative.

I submitted his death certificate and the forms required by Social Security, however they advised me that I need to have the "proper civil authority" declare that I am his legal representative. As this underpayment is only in the neighborhood of $10,000 - I do not want go through the expense of probate.

Any guidance would be greatly appreciated.

Jack.

[Kate]

Probate may not be as expensive as you think. Go down to the county courthouse and file the paperwork to be the administrator of his estate. Doing so should give you authority to claim any and all of his assets. Since this is a smaller estate, there is probably a simplified procedure. Soon after filing you should receive a document named 'letters testamentary', and a certified copy of this is what you need to present to the department of Social Security.