Advanced legal Research and writing for the Paralegals course

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I need help with an assignment in Advanced legal research and writing for the Paralegals course. Our client, John Smith, came into the office today with his first legal issue. Mr. Smith was very upset because his father, Larry, passed away a few weeks ago. Now that the funeral and burial are behind the family, it is time for Mr. Smith to start taking care of estate issues.

Mr. Smith’s father left behind a will that names him as the executor of his estate but before Mr. Smith can proceed with any execution of the estate he must apply for Letters Testamentary with the Probate Court. Once he receives approval from the Court, he will be formally named as the executor of Larry’s estate and be able to distribute property per Larry’s will.

Additional information that we received from Mr. Smith about his father:

  • Name: Larry Smith (age 92)
  • Date of death: 8/21/2022
  • Place of death: Dallas, Dallas County, Texas
  • He had a will dated 04/30/09
  • Witnesses to the Will: Valerie Johnson, 1317 Meadow Drive in Dallas, TX 75213; Melanie Turner, 926 Ann Arbor #128, Dallas, TX 75244
  • He had no children post will
  • He was not divorced
  • He had no charitable donations

Your assignment is the following:

  • Draft the Application for Letters Testamentary (“Application”) for John Smith, in relation to his father’s (Larry Smith) estate.
  • Draft an update letter to John Smith informing him that we have filed the Application for Letters Testamentary on his behalf. Include a filing date and court information (Dallas County Probate Court).
  •  You can make up the State Bar Number (it is usually 7 digits long).