Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Missouri

Re: settle and estate

Call me and I can help

314 725-8000

Re: settle and estate

I read the reply from Greg Kessler, and that is exactly the type of thing I would expect from him. No answer at all to your questions, just a solicitation for your business! This type of response is not appropriate for this forum, and may not even be ethical under the Missouri Code of Professional Conduct. I am reporting Mr. Kessler to the appropriate authorities.

Now, back to your concerns. If you are the personal representative on a decedent's estate, there are several duties which you must perform. It is usually advisable to hire an attorney to assist you and to represent you in court throughout these proceedings. The attorney's fees can be paid out of estate assets and not out of your own pocket. Generally speaking, you must file an inventory with the court listing all of the assets owned by the decedent at the time of death and their approximate value. You must file the Will of course and request that it be admitted to probate. This is usually the first step in opening a probate estate. If there are any claims of creditors against the decedent, you will deal with them. As a practical matter, you will probably also be taking care of collecting life insurance benefits, social security benefits, death benefits from employer or union provided benefits plans, and so forth. These items are usually paid outside of the probate court proceedings and are not considered as part of the probate estate. You may be required to post a bond in court to assure the proper performance of your duties and to protect against the loss of estate assets. There will be final tax returns to prepare and file. There may be disputes among heirs which you must resolve. Eventually, there will be a final settlement and accounting to prepare and file for court approval. At several steps along the way you will need to notify all of the heirs, known and unkown, of various things and file proof with the court. All in all, it can be a very taxing job in some cases, and I strongly recommend the use of an attorney's professional services. I have handled many such matters, and I would be happy to provide you with a free telphone consultation at 314-727-2822 if I might be of any assistance. Thank you.