What is Probate?

Probate is a process of Court intervention after the death of any person where there is no trust and assets exist in the decedent’s estate. The Court will do the following in Probate, with a lawyer paid for by the estate, of course:

1. The Court will inquire if any will was left by the decedent.

2. The Court will require that all beneficiaries be noticed of the death of the decedent, either in the will, or if no will by Intestate Succession. Intestate means died with no will. There is a statute that provides who receives your assets at your death and in what order.

3. The Court will find out if anyone contests the will. Contesting the will can be done by filing another will, arguing that when you signed your will, it was not properly executed, authenticated or witnessed, or that you were unduly influenced to execute your will. Also claims of fraud in making the will are raised often. A trial will be conducted if any of these issues are raised.

4. The Court will get an inventory of all assets of the estate.

5. The Court will order sale of all assets that are not liquid unless the will orders otherwise. If you own a house, the sale of the home will be carried out in a Probate sale, at a substantially less value than market value. Of course if you are married, your spouse would take the house and claim it as hers unless your will dictated otherwise.

5. The Court will either order or approve a final distribution after payment of all taxes and estate taxes due.

6. The Court will order the payment of attorney fees. These fees are according to a schedule as set forth below, and must be ordered paid by the Court who has no discretion, pursuant to California Probate Code 10800-10801.

But that is not all. If the attorney had to help sell the house, or other assets or administer other stuff, the fee is higher. Here is the statute:

No one talks about this when they meet with you to do a will, because when you die, if the heirs call you as the probate attorney, you get to collect fees. So why shoot the hand that feeds you. We do not operate that way. None of our clients go to probate if they own a house, because I show them a better way. Call us for a free consultation, or Contact Us online.

If you think you should go to some cheap attorney trust guy, just read this article before you are duped into creating nothing more than a will that is called a trust and you cannot avoid any of the costs in the article, “How should I select a trust attorney?”