how probate works
probate is the analysis and transfer administration of estate assets previously owned by a deceased person when a property owner dies their assets are commonly reviewed by a probate court this court provides the final ruling on the division and distribution of assets to beneficiaries a probate proceeding will typically begin by analyzing whether or not the deceased person has provided a legalized will in many cases the deceased person has established documentation which contains instructions on how their assets should be distributed after death however in some cases the deceased does not leave a will there are special circumstances that occur with both situations that we ve listed below factors for probate lawprobate law is the field of law that determines how an estate must be divided each state has its own laws and statutes requirements to determine if and how an estate must be probated common factors include 1probate with a willa deceased person with a will is known as a testator when a testator dies the executor is responsible for initiating the probate process the executor is typically a family member the will can also provide details on a specified executor the executor is responsible for filing the will with the probate court states can have different rules for the timeframe in which a will must be filed after death filing the will initiates the probate process the probate process is a court supervised proceeding in which the authenticity of the will left behind is proven to be valid and accepted as the true last testament of the deceased the court officially appoints the executor named in the will which gives the executor the legal power to act on behalf of the deceased a will typically designate a legal representative or executor approved by the court this person is responsible for locating and overseeing all the assets of the deceased the executor has to estimate the value of the estate by using either the date of death value or the alternate valuation date as specified by the internal revenue code irc 2most assets that are subject to probate administration come under the supervision of the probate court in the place where the decedent lived at death the exception is real estate probate for real estate may need to be extended to any county in which the real estate is located the executor also has to pay off any taxes and debt owed by the deceased from the estate creditors usually have a limited amount of time approximately one year from the date of death to make any claims against the estate for money owed to them claims that are rejected by the executor can be taken to court where a probate judge will have the final say on whether or not the claim is justified the executor is also responsible for filing the final personal income tax returns on behalf of the deceased any estate taxes that are pending can also come due within one year from the date of death after the inventory of the estate has been taken the value of assets calculated and debts paid off the executor will then seek authorization from the court to distribute whatever is left of the estate to the beneficiaries 3if a deceased person s estate is insolvent which means that their debts outweigh their assets an administrator will likely choose not to initiate probate in general individual states may have their own rulings on a statute of limitations for the processing of a will through probate states can also have thresholds for probate filings trust funds can be orchestrated to pass immediately to designated inheritors upon death probate without a will