As you can tell by the name of our practice, probate is the field of law which we practice. Because of this, it’s up to us to educate you on the basics of probate. Let’s face it: it’s not pervasively known to people until they’re involved with it. You’ve probably needed to use Google to find answers to probate questions. Fortunately, The Probate Pro is here to answer some of these common questions.
The Concept of Probate
Probate is a court supervised process when somebody has died. This process takes the assets which belonged to the person who died and distributes it to family members or whoever is designated as a beneficiary.
What Goes Through Probate?
As mentioned above, assets are what go through probate. How they go through probate is what must be determined. With a will or a trust, you can plan how assets within an estate are distributed. However, if there is an asset discovered with the deceased individual’s name, but no designated beneficiary inheriting the asset, it will go through probate.
What Doesn’t Go Through Probate?
Assets such as life insurance with a named beneficiary or other financial assets that have a named beneficiary other than the person who died does not go through probate. In addition to this, any jointly-held asset or an asset of both husband and wife does not go through probate. That jointly-held asset will be distributed immediately to the survivor.
Does Having a Will Avoid Probate?
While having a will can dictate how assets are distributed, having a will does not avoid probate. However, assets properly placed in a trust can avoid probate.
Is the Probate Process the Same?
Not at all. The probate process depends on the assets involved, as well as how many assets there are. Small estates, in which the assets exist, can wind up becoming a quicker process than if the estate is large.
You may have many more questions to ask, and that’s fine. We’re here to help you with all probate matters. Give The Probate Pro a call today at (833)-PROBATE today for a free consultation.
