Probate

| What is Probate and Estate Administration?

Following the death of a loved one, a legal process begins to properly handle all of your loved one’s assets. Some assets and estates pass through the probate process; others avoid probate. In some cases, estates can go through an expedited probate process.

Probate is a formal court procedure. In the probate process, all of the assets of the person who died are collected together, all debts are paid, and then remaining assets are distributed to the correct people. If the person died without a will, then the assets are distributed to relatives, following a structure set up by state law. If the person died with a will, then the assets are distributed according to the distribution plan in the will.

An estate attorney can help you determine the process necessary in your situation and help you to navigate that path. The result will be that each of your assets will be transferred in the right way and to the right person.