What is a Probate Attorney?

A probate attorney, also sometimes referred to as an estate lawyer is a legal professional who due to many years of education and training is able to advise the executor/personal representative and/or estate beneficiaries on how to go about settling the affairs of an individual who has passed away. The time following a death is never pleasant but if you hire the right estate lawyer to help you with the financial side of things then it can go as smoothly as possible and in most cases should not take too long to be settled and over with.

It helps to know exactly what probate is. Probate can be defined as “the court supervised process of locating and determining the value of the assets owned in the name of a deceased individual.” This person is referred to in this instance as a “decedent.” Once this has been done then the final bills of the decedent’s must be paid off and estate and/or inheritance taxes must also be paid (if applicable). What is left to do after that is to distribute whatever remains of the assets to the heirs.

Estate lawyers spend many years studying and mentoring in this specialty of the law. This adds up to a lot of experience in dealing with all different types of probate situations. They are also expected to take continuing legal education courses which help to keep them up-to-date on new developments and current trends.

A probate attorney is given the responsibility of teaching the executor of a will the probate process from start to finish. The lawyer will explain everything step-by-step and will teach the person everything that they need to know to make well informed decisions about the estate of the decedent.

This type of attorney is also sometimes hired to offer guidance and advice to the beneficiary when it comes to legal matters as well as other financial matters that have been brought to his or her attention by the executor or personal representative. There is a lot to take in and to handle when it comes to the estate of a deceased person. For many people trying to do everything that needs to be done without the expertise of a probate attorney would be overwhelming and extremely stressful.

A probate attorney does everything in his or her power and based on his/her training and skill to assist and advise the executor on the best course of action to take regarding the legal matters, debts and assets of the decedent. When representing the executor the lawyer will be required to find and to secure all probate and non-probate assets. He will also need to get a hold of the date of death values and the appraisals for all of the property that was owned by the decedent. The probate attorney is also responsible for collecting the proceeds from the life insurance and for giving proper counsel to the executor/personal representative when it comes to retirements plans such as 401k’s and IRA’s.

The estate lawyer is given plenty of other responsibilities as well. He must keep track of the checking account for the decedent’s estate and he must address all issues as they relate to income tax. He also must advise the executor about how to proceed in regard to the outstanding debts and last bills that must be paid from the estate.