Ask an Estate Planning Attorney in Bergen County, NJ: Estate Administration and Probate Mid-Year Update

Estate administration can be complicated and scary. Estate administration involves the probate of a deceased person’s estate, a fancy word for assets, and typically includes three broad actions: ● Asset collection, inventory and appraisal; ● Collecting and paying debts and taxes; and ● Distributing the remaining assets to beneficiaries. This process may occur with or without a will and may occur subject to a probate court order or outside a probate court, if a gift was made during the deceased person’s lifetime, for example. The process itself is formal with many requirements to submit forms, documentation, and provide an account of the assets and liabilities as they are discovered and inventoried. An item that was gifted in the will, may no longer be available at the time of distribution. A probate attorney in Hackensack, New Jersey will help your family and...