What is Probate and is The Estate subject to the Probate Process?

 

Probate is the process in which the court determines the financial legal status of the estate and overseas the payment of claims, disbursement of assets and dissolution of the estate.

Unless the Estate is considered to be a “Small Estate” and can be administered under those rules, all estates go through Probate. The question is what gets admitted to the probate process.  If a will or trust or other means to identify the heir or beneficiary then that is admitted to probate and the court follows those instructions. If there are assets that are not identified in the will, or there is no will or other means to easily identify the heirs and beneficiaries, then those assets are subject to probate administration via the courts.

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The rule can be generally be observed as follows:

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Non probate assets (not inclusive):

Property that is held in joint tenancy or as tenants by the entirety

Bank or brokerage accounts held in joint tenancy or with payable on death (POD) or transfer on death (TOD) beneficiaries

Property held in a trust

Life insurance or brokerage accounts that list someone other than the decedent as the beneficiary

Retirement accounts

 

Probate assets (not inclusive):

Real property that is titled solely in the decedent's name or held as a tenant in common

Personal property, such as jewelry, furniture, and automobiles

Bank accounts that are solely in the decedent's name

An interest in a partnership, corporation, or limited liability company

Any life insurance policy or brokerage account that lists either the decedent or the estate as the beneficiary

 

The estate will also need to go through probate administration if:

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The deceased left minor or incompetent orphans/spouse

There is a wrongful death claim

A Life Ins policy exists but the bene is dead/incompetent, or bene is estate or executor

If the deceased left probate assets, usually defaults to surviving spouse/bene. unless another person lays claim to them

 

On the topic of wrongful death, the executor should pursue any and all wrongful death claims even if family does not want to.  This could result in a significant payout to the estate and proves that the executor is fulfilling their fiduciary responsibility to the estate. As a final note, there is a 2-3 years statute of limitations.

Experts say you do not have to go immediately to lawyer to determine probate assets and organize the estate for probate.  Pre-work can save the estate a lot of time and money by organizing the estate yourself. This is where Wzee comes in.  Following these steps in addition to using our financial engine, calendar function and connecting with family members through our chat function will not only same you time and money but will help ease any family concerns.

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