FARMINGTON, Conn. — A probate judge dealing with the Fotis Dulos estate was not willing to make a determination Thursday that Jennifer Dulos is legally dead.
For the first time, Attorneys for Jennifer Farber Dulos, her mother Gloria Farber, and her estranged husband Fotis Dulos’ estate may all be in agreement.
A motion filed by the administrator of Fotis Dulos’ estate, Christopher Hug, asked the court to declare Dulos legally dead, so that the estate could access a retirement account that Jennifer is the beneficiary of. Lawyers representing Hug, Gloria Farber, Jennifer Dulos, and their five children, agreed.
Under state law, Fotis Dulos’ estate would not be able to access that retirement account without a determination that Jennifer died before Fotis. The judge says she did not receive any guidance from lawyers asking for the determination that would allow it to deviate from a state statute saying that a person may only be declared dead after having been missing for seven years. Lawyers arguing for the determination of her death argued that this situation is similar to those who have been lost at sea or who were victims of the 9/11 terror attacks. They say these people were declared dead and their cases were never appealed because they were settled for civil purposes.
Michelle Troconis’ lawyer, Jon Schoenhorn, opposed the motion. He argued that he thinks a determination of Jennifer Dulos’ death could affect his client in criminal court.
It was also revealed in court that Troconis and Dulos owned a shared safety deposit box at people’s bank that had a number of gold coins, watches, and jewelry totaling about $35,000 dollars in value.
Gloria Farber’s lawyer, Richard Weinstein, says she now has the title to 4 Jefferson Crossing- the Farmington home Fotis Dulos lived in with Jennifer, and then Michelle.
If the court decides that Jennifer died before Fotis, Fotis’ estate would have access to the retirement account they shared. If the court decides she did not die before Fotis, she would still be the beneficiary on the account.