Probate
My brother passed away in CA. We were able to find a living will but have not found a Last Will and Testament that he previously told us he had and that we were his representatives for. There is also a old life insurance policy leaving proceeds to a friend he had over 20years ago and has not had contact with for the last 10years. We have been unable to contact this person plus our brother has told us that he changed his beneficiaries in his will. Since we have been unable to find any finalized information would a Letter of Testimentary give us the ability to handle his estate (less than $100,00) or do we need to go through probate? And what happens to his life insurance policy ? Would the letter of Testimentary or Probate help us deal with that issue?