Anatomy of a Probate Lawyer

 What is probate?
Probate is the court procedure whereby we establish the authenticity and sufficiency of a decedent’s will, if any, identify and evaluate the decedent’s assets, pay administrative expenses and approved claims of creditors and distribute the remaining estate to the beneficiaries.
Probate involves at least some court supervision and is a matter of public record. The whole process typically takes at least a year.
Probate can be expensive. Fees for the services of the executor and the attorney in completing the basic administration of the estate are set by law as a percentage of the gross estate accounted for. The executor and the attorney will each be entitled to these statutory fees as follows:
on the first $100,000, four percent, or ……………………………….$4,000.00
on the second $100,000, three percent, or ……………………..3,000.00
On the next $800,000, the fee will be two percent, or up to $16,000.00.
In addition, the executor and the attorney may be entitled to extraordinary fees, for services rendered in connection with such responsibilities as the management, leasing, preparation, marketing and sale of real or personal property, at rates to be determined by the court. That can add thousands of dollars to the price of administration.
Other administrative expenses, including filing, clerk order and publication fees, charges for certified copies and probate referee (appraiser) fees, will add up to over $1,000.00, depending on the size of the estate.
For example, if John Client dies owning a house worth $370,000, subject to a $200,000 mortgage, a $10,000 CD, furniture and furnishings worth $ 8,000 and a car worth $12,000, the estimated expense of probating his estate will be at least $22,000 of attorneys fees and personal representative’s commissions, plus court costs and publication fees of about another $1,000 or more, plus any bonding fee or extraordinary fees.
Several courts are now requiring the posting of a surety bond, if there is no will provision for bond waiver, even when all the heirs have waived the posting of such bond.
In the above example, all those expenses will apply on a net estate of $200,000!
How could John Client have saved his beneficiaries and heirs such an expensive, time-consuming procedure? He could have avoided probate altogether, by the use of a revocable living trust and other coordinating estate planning documents.
Jerry Kessler practices law in Santa Clarita. For further information, you may contact him at 661-255-1001.