Handling Estates with Care and Efficiency
When a loved one passes away, the legal process of settling their estate can feel overwhelming — especially when grief is still fresh. Our role is to take the procedural burden off your shoulders and guide you through each step with clear explanations and steady handling.
Whether the estate requires a full probate or a simpler administrative process, we assess every situation individually to find the most efficient path forward.
Standard Probate Petitions
When someone passes away with assets titled solely in their name — and no trust or other transfer mechanism is in place — those assets typically pass through probate. We handle the full process:
- Petition to open probate and appoint executor or administrator
- Inventory and appraisal coordination
- Notice to creditors and creditor claim management
- Probate accounting and court approval
- Petition for final distribution to beneficiaries
Trust Administration
When a revocable living trust exists, assets typically pass outside of probate — but the successor trustee still has legal obligations to fulfill. We guide trustees through the full administration process:
- Notifying beneficiaries and providing required disclosures
- Managing and distributing trust assets
- Handling creditor claims against the trust
- Filing required accountings and tax returns
Special Administration
Full probate can take a year or more and carries substantial court costs and attorney's fees. In many situations, a special administration can accomplish specific, time-sensitive goals without waiting for the full probate to conclude.
We've handled special administration in a wide range of situations, including:
- Preventing foreclosure or preserving real property while probate is pending
- Managing or selling business interests that cannot remain unattended
- Addressing urgent creditor or tax deadlines
- Stepping in when an executor or trustee is unavailable, unwilling, or needs to be replaced
- Protecting estate assets from waste or dissipation during disputes
- Facilitating time-sensitive real estate transactions
A special administrator can be appointed quickly by the court and given authority to act on behalf of the estate for a defined purpose — keeping things moving without delay.
Conservatorship & Guardianship
Though handled in probate court, conservatorships and guardianships are a distinct area of our practice. When a family member can no longer manage their own affairs — or when a minor child needs legal protection — we guide families through both the establishment process and ongoing court requirements.