Overview

Avoidance of Probate has become something of a national pastime for many people. In fact, it may be a desirable goal. Probate is the name of the legal process in each state for the settlement of a deceased person's affairs (referred to in the law as the person's "estate"). The process may be, depending on the complexity of the estate and the complexity of the individual state's laws, an expensive and time consuming process or in many instances, particularly if the estate qualifies for special treatment under the state laws for settlement of small estates a relatively easy process. Despite what many people commonly believe, almost every estate requires some level of probate however, even a large estate may qualify for the simplified estate procedures if proper estate planning had been done prior to death.