Ive heard that every estate plans goal should be to avoid probate. What is probate, and why should I want to avoid it?
Put simply, probate is the process through which the court validates a will, empowers the executor to collect and transfer property, and sets a deadline after which creditors cannot make a claim against the estate’s assets. The “avoid-probate-at-all-costs” mantra is another one-size-fits-all solution that is not appropriate for every individual. Probate used to be an onerous, time consuming and expensive process that required a great deal of court and attorney involvement. Beginning in 1983, Illinois began to allow Independent Administration of estates, whereby executors can administer the estate with almost no court involvement. Many estates are now probated using Independent Administration. While most of our estate plans utilize trusts, and there are legitimate reasons why some people may want to avoid probate, the cost of setting up and funding a revocable trust may be greater than the cost of probate. This is one of the issues we’ll carefully evaluate when we meet with you to prepa
