Probate is perhaps one of the most misunderstood topics I get asked questions about. And for good reason; it’s confusing. Probate is a process that must be gone through after someone dies. The Florida Bar Consumer Pamphlet: Probate In Florida, has a good explanation of probate. They state that probate is a court-supervised process for identifying and gathering the assets of a deceased person (decedent), paying the decedent’s debts, and distributing the decedent’s assets to his or her beneficiaries. They go on to say that in general, the decedent’s assets are used first to pay the cost of the probate proceeding, then are used to pay the decedent’s funeral expenses, then the decedent’s outstanding debts, and the remainder is distributed to the decedent’s beneficiaries.
We’ll help you make sense of all of that. And if you completed your estate planning with us, the good news is that your existing plan will likely help you avoid the majority of probate fees and expenses associated with most estates.
We’ll help you in determining the best way to file to save the most in expenses, and assist in completing, when necessary, your:
- Court filings and paperwork
- Publications and notifications required by law
- Inventorying of assets
- Distributing of assets
- Closing of the estate
And we’ll address your questions and concerns covering these typical questions:
- What is probate and how is it paid?
- What will it cost the estate?
- What is the role of the Personal Representative?
- How expensive and time consuming is it?
- When will the beneficiaries get their money?