Probate and Probate Court
Probate court is a specialized court that settles the personal and financial affairs of the deceased including wills, trusts and estates.
Probate is a legal process that manages the assets and liabilities left behind by a person who has died, ensuring that debts are paid, and assets allocated to the correct beneficiaries. Your probate attorney is indispensable in negotiating the complexities of the probate system, whether the deceased left a will or not.
Executors or administrators are responsible for allocating the deceased's estate to the proper beneficiaries, as well as other administrative duties that may include opening an estate bank account, dealing with creditors, selling assets, filing court documents, paying taxes and eventually transferring assets to beneficiaries.
If the will is not valid or if it's contested, the court reviews and decides who will receive the assets. When a person dies without a will, the probate court allocates the person's assets to his or her next of kin. Known as the law of intestate succession, it defines who will receive the assets between surviving spouses, grandchildren, siblings, parents, aunts, and uncles.
