Probate & Trust Administration

If a person dies with or without a will and owns over $75,000 in assets, probate is required. A probate judge will appoint a personal representative to administer (manage) the decedent’s assets. The personal representative is required to gather, inventory, and account for estate assets, notify and pay creditors, file and pay unpaid taxes, and distribute all remaining estate assets to heirs and/or beneficiaries according to the law and the Will of the decedent. If a person dies and all his or her assets are owned by a trust, probate is not necessary, but the trust still needs to be administered according to the law and the trust document. A probate court resolves all disputes related to an estate or trust that arise before and during administration.