A close examination of the specific language of the Will, as well as the type of property being made as bequests through the Will, is required to determine distribution.
If the Will provides that all bequests will be made in cash from non-specified accounts, and if the estate lacked sufficient cash to pay all of the bequests in full, abatement would occur: there would be a proportional diminution or reduction of cash bequests made through the Will.
However, if the Will indicates that a beneficiary be paid a specific amount from a specific source (e.g. “$500 from my First Bank Saving Account”), then this bequest would be paid in full if there were funds available in that account but insufficient funds from other sources to pay the balance of the bequests made in the Will.
There are other rules that would or could come into play should other specific property or gifts be listed in the Will and that property is no longer owned by the decedent or is insufficient to satisfy the bequest being made. These rules can be quite complicated and could require that competent legal counsel be consulted to sort through the rights of all beneficiaries named in the Will.
To find a local attorney to help with the distribution of a Will, see Standard Legal’s Attorney Find page.
For Standard Legal’s easy to use Last Will and Testament legal forms software package, see here.