John J. Donahue

Probate · Will & Trust Contests

Call 310-735-9877
A man stands at a rainy kitchen window among evergreens, phone at his side, a coffee mug and a photo of a Los Angeles house on the counter.

A story John hears every week

You moved away. Your brother stayed. Now Mom’s gone.

Illustration. Not a real client.

You left Los Angeles for a job twenty-two years ago. Your brother stayed. He drove Mom to her appointments; you sent money and called every Sunday.

When she died in the spring, he called to say he’d take care of everything. Now it’s fall. He’s living in the house. Mom always said it would be split down the middle, and every question you ask gets the same answer: “You weren’t here.”

Can I do this without flying to LA?

Much of it, yes. Most of the work happens by phone, email and mail, and documents can usually be signed where you live. Many Los Angeles probate hearings can be attended remotely. If there’s ever a reason you should be there in person, John will tell you when and why.

What usually decides a case like this

What Mom left and who is in charge, not who stayed. “You weren’t here” is a feeling, not a rule.

The practical questions come next: whether a probate is open, whose name is on the deed, and whether your brother is living in a house that belongs to everyone.

Questions families ask in this spot

He says I gave up my share by moving away.

That isn’t how it works. What you inherit is set by Mom’s will or trust, or by California law if she left neither. Where you live has nothing to do with it.

There’s no will. Who gets what?

If there’s no will, no trust and no surviving spouse, California law generally divides a parent’s estate equally among the children.

Can he just keep living in the house?

Not indefinitely and for free, if the house belongs to an estate or trust you share. Someone has to be in charge, and that person has to treat every heir fairly, and that can include whether rent is owed for living there.

More on probate litigation →

What you can do

  • Ask your brother, in writing, for a copy of the trust or will and any notice from a trustee or the court.
  • If he’s the trustee or executor, ask for an accounting. If he’s living in the house, ask on what terms.
  • Watch the mail and write down the date on every notice. Deadlines run whether you live in Los Angeles or not.
  • Write down what Mom said about the house, when, and who heard her.
  • Call John from wherever you are: 310-735-9877.

More stories John hears

A woman with graying hair stands at a rainy kitchen window, seen from behind, holding a sealed envelope at her side.

The clause

“If I challenge it, do I lose what she left me?”

The trust says anyone who contests it gets nothing. She has read that line forty times.

A gray-haired woman stands in her late mother’s small living room with half-packed boxes, an old armchair and afternoon light through the blinds.

The house in Mom’s name

“Mom kept it simple. Now nobody can sell the house.”

No trust, no fight, just a house in Mom’s name. And nothing moves without the court.

Three adult siblings in dark clothes stand apart in a family dining room after a funeral, one holding an envelope of papers.

Cut out at the end

“They always said it would be split three ways.”

Mom and Dad always said everything would be split evenly. The trust that surfaced after the funeral says otherwise.