Trust Administration in Contra Costa County

San Ramon Estate Planning Lawyer

Following the death of a loved one, the family members will have the responsibility of managing the deceased's estate. This will include making sure any taxes and debts are paid, as well as ensuring that the estate is divided up according to their will. The person who is responsible for this is known as the executor of the estate. If the deceased individual did not name an executor in their will, the court may choose one instead. The executor could be an individual, company, or it could be more than one person.

The first thing the executor will have to do is to create an inventory of the entire estate. This means that all of their assets will have to be documented. The reason that this is so important is not only so that they can divide the assets to the beneficiaries, but also so that they can repay any debts that were owed by the individual. Once this is accomplished, the remainder of the estate can be distributed according to the will. If the estate goes into probate, the executor will be responsible for seeing it through this complex process. If you want to know how to administrate an estate, then get in touch with one of our San Ramon estate planning attorneys!

What is probate? How does it work?

One thing that can make estate administration even more difficult is if probate cannot be avoided. So what exactly is probate? When a person dies and they do not have a valid will or trust set up, the court may step in to handle the distribution of the estate. Another reason an estate may go into probate is if there are questions as to whether or not the will is valid. Probate oversees what the executor would have done on his or her own, but is more expensive and time-consuming.