When a loved one dies, the surviving family is left facing many tough decisions, many times without any direction on how to settle the affairs of the deceased. I can assist you through the legal process of administering your loved one’s estate. In cases where the deceased had a will, I will help the executor or personal representative of the estate get appointed by the court, as well help them understand the process and fiduciary responsibilities required by the probate court. With proper guidance, the personal representative can meet the state requirements governing probate and carry out the wishes of the deceased person as stated in their will. In the case of an estate being held in trust, I provide hands-on experience and guidance to assist trustees in fulfilling their fiduciary duties.

The probate process includes a petition to the court for the person nominated in the will, or whoever has statutory priority, to be confirmed by the court as the estate personal representative (executor). Until a person is confirmed by the court, and receives Letters Testamentary (in the case of a will) or Letters of Administration (in the case of intestacy (no will)) they lack legal authority to take possession of estate property or to transfer estate property. This makes using estate funds to pay expenses, or selling property if necessary, difficult if not impossible. Once a person is confirmed by the court and receives either Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration, they can then take possession of assets, give notice to creditors, begin to pay expenses and proceed to administer the estate.

In the case of an estate held in trust, there is typically no need for a person named as a trustee to be confirmed by a court. There are exceptions, but generally if a trustee vacancy exists due to the death of the trustee, the successor trustee need only sign the applicable documents to assume trusteeship and proceed to administer the trust. However, similar to probate, trustees still have specific fiduciary duties. These include taking possession of and inventorying assets, giving notices to creditors and paying valid claims, following the terms of the trust, providing information, inventory and accounting to beneficiaries of the trust, and distributing trust assets per the trust. In some cases it may be necessary to set up sub-trusts or seek modification of trusts in order to mitigate unnecessary estate taxes or to carry out the wishes of the settlor of the trust. Trusts are often lengthy and complex documents with provisions designed to give guidance to a trustee in a variety of circumstances. As both an estate planner and trust & probate attorney, I am very familiar with the language found in trusts and have years of experience helping trustees successfully administer trusts with complex provisions and circumstances.