Probate
The articles below provide practical information regarding the Probate process in Minnesota. Probate is the judicial process triggered when someone dies owning property, i.e. property titled in the decedent's name alone.
Choosing Fiduciaries Part I - Personal Representative
10/12/2012 - A fiduciary is a person or an institution that you give the power to act on your behalf or administer your affairs according to the terms you lay out in your estate planning documents. They have a "fiduciary duty" to act in good faith according to your wishes and the terms you set out definin...
Estate Planner's Arsenal: Common Probate Avoidance Tools
04/28/2012 - The "Estate Planner's Arsenal" series highlights specific estate planning tools and their uses. Clients often state that their main estate planning goal is to avoid probate. This article does not comment on whether probate avoidance is a good thing, as that depends on everyone's unique perso...
Four Simple Ways to Prevent Conflict through Estate Planning
11/19/2011 - Grieving for the loss of a loved one is hard enough without enduring extra familial conflict surrounding the death. The death of a loved one is an emotional time and can often rekindle old arguments and rivalries between family members, as well as start new arguments. However, you can take s...
Overview: Duties of a Personal Representative in Minnesota
08/30/2011 - The personal representative (formerly called "executor") is the person that administers the estate when a person dies. The personal representative runs the show during probate. Basically, the personal representative ("PR") winds up the decedent's financial affairs, pays the decedent's debts...
Probate Alternative: Collection by Affidavit
06/25/2011 - In Minnesota, if the decedent owned probate property, but the value of the property is small enough, the legislature created a method for collecting that property without having to open a full-blown probate proceeding. This process is known as Collection by Affidavit and the requirements are s...
Will My Estate Have to Go Through Probate?
06/25/2011 - Probate protects the interests of the estate's beneficiaries and creditors by ensuring the orderly distribution of assets and payment of debts/expenses. People often confuse the probate process with estate taxes and high-value estates. However, while estate taxes can be paid during the probate p...
What Do I Need To Do Right After a Loved One Dies?
06/15/2011 - The death of a loved one is an emotional and chaotic time. You may not be thinking clearly and you may not know what to do. Logistical tasks are probably the last things on your mind, but it is important to know what steps to take immediately after a loved one's death. This list is for tas...
Special Issues with Joint Bank Accounts During Probate
06/06/2011 - As we know, the probate process only deals with a decedent's probate property (see glossary). A joint bank account will generally pass to the surviving account holder automatically without assistance from the probate process. Example: husband and wife are joint owners of a checking account...
The Problem of Owning Real Estate in Other States
05/13/2011 - Let us say you are the personal representative of your father's estate. Your father lived and passed away in Minnesota. As you are listing the assets of his estate, you discover that your father owned a small piece of real estate in California and another piece of real estate in Florida. Y...
What Does Probate Cost?
05/12/2011 - Probate cost varies from estate to estate. An often-quoted average is between 3% to 7% of the total estate. Most people think of estate taxes when they think of the cost of probate. While the estate tax does apply to qualifying estates (estates of over $1 million for the MN estate tax, as ...