Beneficiaries named in Trust documents do not sign the Trust. Only the person creating the Trust and the trustee of that Trust execute the instrument by signing it. Also, beneficiaries have no right to see the Trust, until the person who made the Trust dies. Although a lawyer is not required to set up a Trust, it is highly improbable that a person with no training could do it properly. An improperly created Trust is not likely to have the effect that was intended and people often wind up in court over it. That can take more in costs and time than probate would.

A Power of Attorney is not the same as a Trustee or an Executor (or Personal Representative) for a Will. A Power of Attorney is a document giving someone the responsibility to carry out whatever specified business is authorized by the document. When the person who created or gave the Power of Attorney dies, the Power of Attorney is immediately void.

If your mother died with any property that was in her name only (not shared with anyone else), the property would have to go through the probate process if it was not titled in a Trust. If she died with property that was jointly owned with rights of survivorship, there would be no probate required and the property would become entirely owned by whoever else was a joint owner. (It is common for married couples to own property jointly, so that if one dies, the other automatically is the sole owner.) If your sister was on a bank account with your mother that typically means the sister inherits the bank account because she was a joint owner. If there were other joint owners (father, sisters, etc.) they would also inherit the account.

From the little information you give, I can see no reason for you to give anyone your social security number.

What to do? Get an experienced Alabama estate lawyer to go over the details with you, verify what has or has not occurred and help you understand your options.

To your success,
Gale Allison, Principal Attorney
The Allison Firm, PLLC
http://www.theallisonfirm.com