What is Probate?
Probate is the process of having a court supervise the taking of an inventory of assets, appointment of a representative for the deceased, notification of creditors, and payment of the debts of the deceased, payment of any taxes due, notification of all potential heirs or beneficiaries of the deceased, and thereafter granting of a judgment of distribution transferring ownership to the rightful heirs or beneficiaries of the deceased.
Probate is a court procedure that is required before a person’s assets can be transferred to his/her heirs. Probate involves a series of steps such as publishing and giving notice of the death to creditors, validating the person’s will, identifying the person’s heirs, paying of the deceased person’s debts, selling of the estate assets, if required, and distributing the estate to his/her heirs.
Probate is an inescapable process upon the transfer of assets provided in a valid will or intestacy (death without a will). Probate is a court supervised process developed under California law that provides for the transfer of your assets at your death to the beneficiaries set forth in your will and in the manner provided by your will. If you die in testate, your estate is still subject to probate court administration and a person is appointed by the court to handle your estate (known as the administrator). If the assets in your name alone at your death do not include interest in real estate and have a total value of less than $100,000, then generally the beneficiaries under your will follow a statutory procedure to effect the transfer of the assets pursuant to you will, subject to your debts and without a formal court supervised probate administrator. Some of the disadvantages of probate include its public process. Your estate plan and the value of your assets become a public record.
