Copyright 2004 Riley Legal Group
LET'S LOOK AT THE TYPICAL PROBATE CASE
Much like a train that can only follow its tracks to a destination, probate is a system which requires the use of a Court procedure to wind-up a deceased person's financial affairs. Here is how the system works:
1. A Will is taken to a local Probate Court by an attorney who is hired by the family.
2. The attorney is either paid a percentage of the estate assets OR an hourly basis for his or her legal work.
3. The probate estate must remain open for approximately 5 months (initial publication of notice period plus filing of documents to close estate) and notice of the estate opening is published in a local newspaper(so that the deceased person's creditors can be made aware of his/her death) and is open to public inspection.
4. The individual or organization appointed as Personal Representative (also sometimes called the Executor) gathers up assets, pays bills and taxes and handles other administrative duties
5. Whenever the probate estate is concluded, the remaining assets are distributed to the persons named in the Will (unless they are disqualified by the Court).
When a person dies without a Will (Intestacy), the same probate process is used to settle the estate but the law of the deceased person's state of residence determines how the assets will be distributed(usually to next of kin).
Does the Probate System work? It certainly does! However, it needs to be identified as one of several estate planning methods that are available today and not the only system that individuals can use.
Many states have a minimum probate threshold-that is, the least amount of assets a person can own without having their estate taken to Probate Court. That amount varies from state to state
IN ADDITION, if an individual dies owning real estate in more than one state, a SEPARATE probate estate must be opened for each state in which the real estate is located. This will likely create additional fees for the handling of the additional probate work.
(picture copyright 1999 by Ibrium HB)
2. The attorney is either paid a percentage of the estate assets OR an hourly basis for his or her legal work.
3. The probate estate must remain open for approximately 5 months (initial publication of notice period plus filing of documents to close estate) and notice of the estate opening is published in a local newspaper(so that the deceased person's creditors can be made aware of his/her death) and is open to public inspection.
4. The individual or organization appointed as Personal Representative (also sometimes called the Executor) gathers up assets, pays bills and taxes and handles other administrative duties
5. Whenever the probate estate is concluded, the remaining assets are distributed to the persons named in the Will (unless they are disqualified by the Court).
When a person dies without a Will (Intestacy), the same probate process is used to settle the estate but the law of the deceased person's state of residence determines how the assets will be distributed(usually to next of kin).
Does the Probate System work? It certainly does! However, it needs to be identified as one of several estate planning methods that are available today and not the only system that individuals can use.
Many states have a minimum probate threshold-that is, the least amount of assets a person can own without having their estate taken to Probate Court. That amount varies from state to state
IN ADDITION, if an individual dies owning real estate in more than one state, a SEPARATE probate estate must be opened for each state in which the real estate is located. This will likely create additional fees for the handling of the additional probate work.
(picture copyright 1999 by Ibrium HB)
