What is Probate?
Probate is a legal proceeding under the jurisdiction and supervision of the Probate Court in the decedent’s county of residence. The probate process is used to appoint an executor, gather and value the decedent’s assets, notify and pay creditors, pay court costs and administration expenses, and distribute the remaining assets to the intended beneficiaries.
Probate is the court-supervised process by which a will is determined to be the will-maker’s final statement regarding how the will-maker wants his or her property distributed. It also confirms the appointment of the personal representative (a.k.a. executor) of the estate. It broadly includes the process by which assets are gathered; applied to pay debts, taxes, and expenses of administration; and distributed to those designated as beneficiaries in the will. Probate typically takes six months to three years to complete and generally requires the service of a lawyer. Even if you die without a will, your estate must still pass through the probate system. In that case, the court will apply state law to decide how to distribute your estate among your relatives. The typical probate procedure includes the following steps: • The will is filed with the local probate court (and becomes public record). • Your family conducts an inventory of your property. • Your property is appraised. • All debt
Probate is a court-supervised process that applies to people who die with or without a will that includes: TOP • Appointing a personal representative to be in charge of administering your estate; the executor you name in your will has the right to appointment • Evaluating and deciding the validity of your will (if one exists) • Gathering all your assets, taking an inventory of those assets and having those assets appraised • Notifying your creditors that you have died and giving them a specified timeframe within which they must file a claim to your property • Paying your outstanding expenses, debts, and taxes • Finally, distributing the remaining assets to the person(s) entitled to them pursuant to the California law or the provisions of your will (if one exists)
Probate is a legal process by which a deceased person’s affairs are settled. Probate is the legal process where a deceased person’s assets are properly distributed to heirs and beneficiaries. It is overseen by the courts to ensure that debts are paid and that the distribution of assets is done properly. In this process all property is accounted for, debts are paid, and all remaining property is distributed to the rightful heirs. The term probate means “to prove the will” through a proceeding that usually occurs in court. In the event that a will does not exist or is not available, there are state laws to deal with the orderly distribution of assets to those who are entitled to inherit them. Unfortunately, proceeding through probate can be long, daunting, expensive and at times overwhelming. This is to assure all involved that you do not have to do it alone. There are sources of assistance and options. The information contained on this page is meant to give you an overview of the proces
My 1975 edition of Black’s Law Dictionary defines probate as: “The act or process of proving a will. . . . The proof before a . . . duly authorized person that a document produced before him for official recognition and registration and alleged to be the last will and testament of a certain deceased person, is such in reality. A judicial act or determination of a court having competent jurisdiction establishing the validity of a will. . . . In American law, now a general name or term used to include all matters of which probate courts have jurisdiction.” The term “Arizona probate” means an Arizona Superior Court monitored legal proceeding by which the liabilities and probate assets of a deceased person (“decedent”) are paid and administered and the probate assets of the estate are transferred by a personal representative (called administrator, executor or executrix in other states) of the estate appointed by the Court. A.R.S. 14-3101. This article is a discussion of Arizona probate law
