A wrongful-death recovery was not simply a pot of ordinary estate money available to anyone who said the deceased had been part of the family.

Different claims had to be distinguished.

The people legally entitled to proceeds had to be identified.

Approved expenses and any valid obligations had to be handled.

One beneficiary could not give away another person’s share without authority.

I understood very little of that before David explained it.

I understood enough afterward to ask him to explain the parts I still found confusing.

Margaret participated wherever her consent or legal position required it.