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What Use Is The Safety Deposit Box Key?


The safety deposit box key is used to open the safety deposit box at the bank. People keep valuable documents and items in safety deposit boxes, such as deeds to land, certificates of birth, marriage certificates, stocks, bonds, annuities, certificates of deposit, IRAs, 401(k)s, jewelry, and coin collections. In the probate of a decedent’s estate, those items must be listed in the detailed descriptive list, in the petition for possession, and in the judgment of possession. The tenth item to be located is a cluster of items including stocks, bonds (both United States and corporate bonds), annuities, debentures, and any type of deferred compensation agreement.

In Handling The Succession, What Benefit Do These Items Pose?

Once again, most of these items will contain account numbers, by which they can be identified and listed in the probate proceedings and the detailed descriptive list, the petition for possession, and the judgment of possession. Additionally, they will contain contact information through which correspondence should be addressed by the executor and/or administrator of the estate or by the heir or legatee to effect transfer of title when the succession is completed. The eleventh item to be located would be any life insurance policies.

Are Life Insurance Policy Benefits Normally An Asset Of The Succession?

Normally, the main beneficiary of the life insurance policy is paid those benefits outside of the succession proceedings. However, sometimes the decedent’s estate is the named beneficiary. In that instance, the policy benefits become property of that succession and must be listed in the probate proceedings. They are listed in the probate proceedings in the detailed descriptive lists in a petition for possession and a judgment of possession. Here again, the policy will normally have contact information on how to locate and deal with payment of these benefits, even to the succession or the person or persons otherwise named as beneficiary of the insurance policy. The twelfth item to be located would be one indicating that the decedent had some interest in some business enterprise.

How Will This Document Be Used?

Some people are pretty secretive about their business affairs, even with their spouses and children. A thorough search may uncover that the decedent was a silent partner in some business organization, such as a partnership, a limited liability company, or a small corporation. The uncovered document may reveal not only the percentage of ownership in the business, but an agreement called a buy-sell. This buy-sell agreement would set out the required procedure to follow in the event of the death of one of its owners of the business to effect transfer of the decedent’s interest to the other business owners. It will also set out a procedure to value the business interest to be conveyed. The thirteenth item to be located would be any type of collection the decedent may have possessed when he died.

What Type Of Collections Are You Speaking Of?

A collection could be of many different things, such as coins, stamps, jewelry, art, or firearms, and could be located in the home or in a safety deposit box at the bank. If the collection appears to be valuable, it should be appraised by an expert in that field. The collection and its appraised value would be used in the probate proceedings for the detailed descriptive list, the judgment of possession, and the petition for possession. Certainly, not every decedent will have every one of the listed items searched for. However, the spouse, heirs, or legatees should satisfy themselves by using this list I have set out above for documents or items as a checklist from which to search. In closing, it is to be understood that the sooner the search for the above items is finalized, the sooner the succession can be completed and the assets delivered to the proper legal owners in accordance with a judgment of possession.

For more information on Safety Deposit Box Key In Louisiana, an initial consultation is your next best step. Get the information and legal answers you are seeking by calling (225) 228-3450.

Gordon R. Crawford, Esq.

Call Now For A Free Case Evaluation:
(225) 228-3450

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