When one passes away and where assets in the name of the decedent exceed $150,000 (and the asset does not have a surviving co-owner or beneficiary designated) a Court supervised proceeding called a "Probate" is usually required.   A Will alone does not avoid Probate.  

During the Probate, the Court will formally appoint an Administrator (Executor) and give him or her legal authority to wrap up a decedent's affairs and distribute assets.  If you are an Executor under a Will or find yourself in the position where you need to step forward and serve as an Administrator and help wrap of the affairs of a decedent, call us.  We assist Administrators of estates through the Probate Court process. 

The first step is to explain what your getting into.  The job is difficult and not for everyone.  If you are still willing to step up, then next  step is to help the Administrator get appointed by the Court after giving notice to all interested parties.  Once appointed by the Court, the Administrator must collect and gain control of all assets of the decedent.   All heirs and/or beneficiaries under a Will must be given notice along the way.  Governmental agencies, tax authorities and creditors also must be given notice.  Debts must be resolved and paid and tax returns must be prepared and filed.  Assets may need to be liquidated and a plan of distribution to beneficiaries or heirs needs to be set.  Tedious bookkeeping is required and a final accounting, balanced to the penny, is required in most cases.  The Court supervises and must approve most every aspect of the proceedings. 

If you are not up to the task but the job still needs to get done, we regularly work with private professional fiduciaries who serve as the Administrator.  We're happy to make referrals.

Where assets in the name of a decedent are less than $150,000, we also provide assistance to the rightful beneficiary or heir in collecting and gaining control of the asset.

Probates are expensive, time consuming and open to the public.    The good news is that Probates are avoidable when properly using a living Trust as part of an Estate Plan.