Estate Administration

While much of our practice is devoted to helping clients avoid probate entirely, families often ask us to help them with the probate and estate settlement process.

Probate is a court-managed process in which a person’s assets are retitled and distributed after they pass away. It sounds simple enough, but the process can be expensive, time-consuming, and frustrating — even more so without proper legal counsel.

• At Rischard Elder Law we can handle the probate and estate settlement process for you from beginning to end.
• We understand the difficulty of losing a loved one and the stress of handling the legal process, especially following a family member’s passing.
• Our goal is to lift the burden from your shoulders and allow you to concentrate on what is most important—coming to terms with your loss and moving forward with your life.

For a trust to accomplish its goals it must be properly administered and funded

• Although there are many different types of trusts, the administration process generally involves filings with the IRS, the court and state taxing authorities, as well as notifying individuals affected by the trust.
• There are other duties as well, including the settlement of creditor claims, opening bank accounts, arranging for the sale of property and other assets, paying the decedent’s final expenses, and more.
• These duties must all be performed using accurate and proper accounting practices.

Accomplishing all of this would be difficult enough without the added grief and stress of losing a loved one.

• Be a guide to you through every stage of the process.
• Explain the potential legal and financial penalties of failing to administer a trust properly if you are considering serving as trustee on your own.
• Work closely with your existing advisors to ensure the directives of the trust are carried out properly.