When to Probate a Will

On January 26, 2012, in Attorney, by Jesse McComb

A probate is an inquiry into the wishes of a deceased individual when it comes to how their estate will be distributed. There are many different reasons why a will probate is a good idea. Generally theses reasons will have to do with ambiguity involved with the process of the transfer of an estate when an individual dies.

Examples of when it’s good to perform a will probate include-

No Will

If there was no will at all involved in the estate, then a will probate is definitely necessary. This is because there is a high probability there will be contestation among the various interested parties in the estate, such as children, spouses, and anyone else who can prove the possibility of being intended to receive benefits from a deceased individual.

Usually a will is exactly the document that does this, but in cases where there is no will, a will probate will be necessary to figure out where all of the different parts of the estate should go. In these cases, a will probate lawyer is also a good idea to defend the individual rights of interested parties in the estate.

No Other Names On Property

In many cases, there will be cosigners for property, so they are obvious beneficiaries of becoming sole owners of parts of the estate that they also are named on. But if the deceased individual is the only one who has his or her name on any parts of a property at all, then a will probate is necessary in order to facilitate a transfer of the will to the proper interested parties.

Deceased Beneficiaries

If beneficiaries of a will are already dead, then a will probate is necessary to determine where the estate will go after that particular individual has passed. This is because it won’t be immediately obvious where the estate should go if the only people named in the will are already dead.

This is also the case if no beneficiaries are actually named in a will probate.

Joint Ownership Cases

In cases where the deceased is named on a property, a will probate is required in order to take the deceased individual’s name off of a particular piece of property or estate since you can’t really leave that name on the property title. It will be determine through the will probate where that apart of the ownership should pass.

This can be complicated depending on the estate in particular. It also depends on how much of the property the deceased individual previously owned.

Click here to contact a BC estate probate lawyer or click here to learn about BC estate probate legal services.

Options to Probate a Will

On January 26, 2012, in Attorney, by Jesse McComb

When starting to probate a will, there are a few different possibilities to consider.

For example, you need to decide whether you should probate a will at all. You should also consider the way in which you should go about the process of trying to probate a will.

In some cases, you may wish to avoid probating a will, if you want to try to force a particular outcome without having to go through the uncertainty, expense, time and difficulty of the process involved when you probate a will.

Other options

Depending on the state or province, you may have alternatives to the probating process. For example, in the state of Utah you can file a small estate affidavit. IN this case, as long as the total amount of the property does not exceed one hundred thousand dollars, it’s legal to file this affidavit after 30 days have elapsed since an individuals death. This allows you to get the benefits of their property will the need to probate a will, as long as all of the different requirements in the affidavit are met.

This is just one example of another option. The law can vary widely state to state. This is why it’s quite important to get the services of a lawyer to help navigate through the complicated process involved when you probate a will.

Informal Options to consider

In some states, you can also file an informal probate. The various individuals often need to sign to allow this process, which is an alternative to what can be a long and drawn out processing when you probate a will. You don’t need to worry about a lot of extra expenses when you do an informal probate process, which can be a good way to go depending on the circumstances.

It can well be that probating a will requires paying for attorneys travelling around, or paying for court time won’t be required when you probate a will in an informal manner. This type of option is usually only possible when there are no particular complications involved with a will. If the complications are minor then the ability to probate a will informally can be a great way to save money for all parties involved.

The above is also a good way to go for emotional reasons as well. It’s a good idea to try and negotiate with other interested parties as far as wills are concerned since a protracted conflict in court is seldom a good idea for any parties involved. You run the danger of racking up expenses comparable to the amount anyone might get from the will in the first place.

Next, discover these BC estate probate lawyers or these Surrey estate probate lawyers.

The grant of probate application is issued when the court says that the last will of a deceased individual is valid. In addition to this, the court will verify that the personal representative or executor is there and that they are going to handle the assets in the manner required by law. With the right lawyer on hand, you are going to find that the grant of probate is going to take a very short period of time; however it does take a little time.

Based on law, you must wait for a person to have been dead seven days before you can submit the will to probate. This is the minimum amount of time to wait and in most cases, family members will end up waiting longer. The reason is the final handling of the body and other matters will typically consume most of their time.

When the probate application has been submitted, it can take anywhere from 4 weeks to around 6 weeks (or longer) for the grant of probate. Once the grant has been received, the institutions that have rights to assets can then claim it at this time. Land and other items can then increase the amount of time that is required for individuals to wait.

After application is submitted and grant of probate is granted, those owed inheritance will then receive the funds that they are owed. In reality, the entire process can take anywhere from 6 months to a year and a half. Bear in mind that the executor has a limited time to handle the distribution of items. This will depend on where you live and what the legal regulations end up being as well.

It is very important that you understand that when it comes to the grant of probate, the process isn’t going to happen overnight. Instead, any inheritance that you are entitled to shouldn’t be counted on for a few months at a minimum. During this time, you will learn what you will actually be receiving and any legal concerns that come up can be addressed at this time as well.

If you are looking at dealing with the probate process, take the time to hire an experienced lawyer. They will be able to handle your case and to ensure that your best interests are met during this legal process. Since it can be stressful for some, this can help to give you some peace of mind.

Next, talk to a Langley estate probate lawyer or an Abbotsford estate probate lawyer about probating your estate.

Dealing With Estate Probate

On October 29, 2011, in Attorney, by Jesse McComb

When a loved one dies, it’s a very difficult time. It can seem overwhelming to have to deal with legal and estate administration matters.

Yet, if you are the executor of an estate, you must administrate the estate. The fact is that in many legal systems, the title of property and assets must be legally transferred from the deceased to the beneficiaries also called heirs.

In many jurisdictions, as an executor you can probate the estate on your own … without the aid of a lawyer. However, many people, especially when an estate has assets, choose to hire an estate probate lawyer to take over the probating process.

The probate process can be an involved process.

For starters, there can be a lot of paperwork to deal with. Much of the paperwork involves tracking down all the assets, including every account statement as well as dealing with any debts such as credit card debt, loans, etc.

If the deceased owned a business, the probate process can be more complex because there are issues dealing with the business ownership – whether the business was owned as sole proprietorship or via shares as a corporation.

In law, a corporation is a going concern, which means it continues when individual owners die. That said, the shares must be taken into account during an estate probate.

Other complex matters that may need addressing are taxation issues. Before an estate can be probated, taxes due and owing as well as all filings must be completed to the satisfaction of the tax authorities.

It’s true that some estates are much simpler than other estates. Regardless of the complexity, there are steps that must be taken when probating an estate and these steps are made easier by hiring an estate lawyer. Talk to an estate probate lawyer today if you’re dealing with an estate.

Click here to contact a BC estate probate lawyer or click here to learn about BC estate probate legal services.