Probate
With advance planning, Edmonds Law Office can help keep your estate out of probate court. When probate court is needed after the death of loved one, our attorneys can assist you with probate estate administration.
Probate & Trust Administration
Upon the death of a loved one, you may find that assets cannot be transferred to beneficiaries without involvement of probate court. Edmonds Law Office handles probate court administration and other types of estate administration. In some situations we can help you use alternative, simplified methods to handle an estate, even if you have been told that probate court is required. Depending on the assets and debts involved, tools such as a Small Estate Affidavit and a Bond in Lieu of Probate can be used to administer estates outside of court.
The probate attorneys at Edmonds Law Office can guide an executor, personal representative, family member or claimant through the probate process from start to finish, ensuring that all options are completely understood before important decisions are made.
If your deceased loved one had a trust, we can help you administer the trust estate even if the estate does not need to proceed through probate court. Usually trust administration is simpler than administering an estate in probate court. However, there may be steps in the process which are confusing, and the trust administration attorneys at Edmonds Law Office are happy to provide guidance in this process.
In any kind of estate administration, it is not uncommon for creditors to pressure someone into assuming the debts of a deceased individual, even when the law does not require it. Edmonds Law Office can help you determine whether claimed debts and expenses of an estate are valid or must be paid.
The probate attorneys at Edmonds Law Office are strive to take a personal representative through the probate process, from start to finish, ensuring that all options are completely understood before a decision is made.
Ways to Avoid Probate
Clients often ask us to help structure their estate planning to simplify or reduce costs of estate administration or to avoid probate court altogether. While it is important for everyone to have a will, having a will, without more, will not help in avoiding probate. There are many avenues for simplifying estate administration or avoiding probate, some of which have been brought about by recent changes in probate law. Tools for avoiding probate include:
- Revocable Living Trust
- Proper Titling
- Account beneficiaries
- Vehicle Beneficiary Affidavits
- Pay-on-Death (POD) Accounts and Registrations (a/k/a Totten Trusts)
- Transfer on Death (TOD) Accounts and Registrations
- TOD Stock registrations
- Transfer on Death Instruments for Residential Real Estate
- Joint Ownership with Right of Survivorship (JTWROS)
- Life Insurance Beneficiaries
- Business Succession Planning
We can help you avoid probate court or simplify the administration of your estate through effective estate planning and administration. The experienced probate lawyers at Edmonds Law Office will evaluate your options and help you choose a plan that works best for your needs.
If you would like to speak with an estate attorney about probate court administration, probate court avoidance or any other estate planning matter, submit your inquiry through our online contact form or call Edmonds Law Office today at (618) 659-3442!
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