Whew, I'd have to backtrack the search but my recollection is that each Dermond would become Trustee in the event of the death of the other and if both died around the same time, the Trustee role went to the eldest son. I'd be quite surprised if there were no Trust for an estate like the Dermonds. The whole idea is to avoid probate. As with most any Trust there is a Beneficiary List and an Inventory List. All personal property, cash, debt, damn near everything becomes a part of the Trust upon death. Priority of payments typically goes to attorney fees, then accounting fees and if indicated Trustee fees, assuming of course there is money remaining after attorney fees! Also know that it takes quite awhile (several months to well over a year) before any final distribution can be issued, in large part because the tax returns have to be filed for the both the Trust and the decedent(s). The more complex the Trust the longer it takes to finalize. I'll try to find what I recall having read about the estate.