When you pass away it will be the responsibility of a personal representative for your estate also known as the executor or administrator to handle everything outlined in your will. Our team at Grewal Law PLLC is available to handle the administration of your estate from coordinating the transfer of assets to handling tax forms for your family. The legal process of settling your estate after your death is called probate. During the process, your heirs are identified and your will is validated.

Depending on the types of assets you own, it may also be necessary for your estate to go through probate court. If your property and assets are valued at less than $22,000 in 2016 shortened court proceedings are available, however, estates valued higher than this amount can take much longer. Probate proceedings are also public, so outsiders besides your loved ones will have access to information regarding your estate. We can help you plan now to determine the best options for your estate and your family while possibly avoiding probate court.

Planning ahead for the administration of your estate will save your family heartache and headaches once you are gone. Facing the loss of a family member is already emotional, so it is important to help them avoid additional stress after your loss by preparing your estate now.

By planning in advance, you will ensure someone you trust will be handling your affairs instead of someone appointed by the court system. At Grewal Law PLLC, we are your experienced estate planning and probate attorneys in Michigan. As your estate administrator, we can help your family avoid probate court which is a process that could last from several months to several years.

Contact our firm today at (888) 211-5798 for a consultation.

Process of Administering Estate

During the planning process, we can help you with writing a will, setting up a trust, or outlining end of life medical decisions. As your estate administrator, we can help you take care of all these documents to ensure your family will have a smooth transition after you pass away. We will also help you understand the different types of accounts you can create at your financial institution to help with the transfer of funds to a loved one.

While setting up the administration of your estate, our team will help you do things to help your family avoid the onerous probate court process:

• First and foremost, we will help you with the writing of a will designed to address all of your wishes and concerns related to your estate. Besides the drafting of the will, we will handle filing it with your local municipality.
• If a piece of property is only in your name, then there will be a need for the asset to be processed through probate. By adding the names of other family members you can help avoid probate. As your experienced estate attorneys in Michigan, we can discuss with you options for property transfer including the creation of a trust or the adding of someone’s name to the property through a quit claim deed.

We will also help you understand the advantages and disadvantages to adding someone’s name to real property and personal property to decide if it is the best option for you. There are restrictions regarding joint tenancy that our legal counsel will help you understand.

• In addition, we can help you understand the pros and cons to making a lifetime gift of a piece of property or another asset. There are different gift law tax ramifications depending on the value along with other restrictions to making gifts, so we can help you decide if this is the best option for you.

Losing a family member is stressful enough; help your family avoid additional pressure by making plans for the administration of your estate now. Going through probate court can be a long process, so take steps now to help your loved ones avoid this unnecessary headache.