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Probate and Estate Planning The Probate Department handles matters listed below. Click on a link below for further information, procedures, forms and situations that would necessitate the filing of one of the above.
A will is a written instrument which directs the disposition of a person's property to take place after that person's death. The probate of a will is the procedure where the Probate and Family Court finds a will to be valid or invalid. Ordinarily, the person writing the will, called the testator, designates another person, the executor/executrix, to be responsible upon the testator's death (now called decedent) for gathering all the testator's assets, paying the legitimate expenses of the estate, and then distributing the remaining balance to the individuals or organizations according to the will's instructions. The executor/executrix files a petition with the Probate and Family Court identifying him/herself as the executor/executrix of the will and submitting the will to the Court for probate. The petition must list all persons with an interest in the estate of the decedent. The Court then issues a citation to the executor/executrix, who mails a copy of it to all persons listed on the petition and publishes it in a newspaper designated by the Court. Persons with an interest in the estate have thirty days to file an objection to the petition. The petitioner is appointed executor/executrix if if no objections are filed. (If a petitioner is a male, the appropriate term is executor; if the petitioner is a female, the appropriate term is executrix.) If objections are filed, the case is marked for trial and, after hearing, the Court enters a decree appointing an executor/executrix. The executor/executrix must prepare an inventory of the contents and value of the estate, and an annual accounting of the increase or decrease of the estate's value. Interested parties may contest the inventory or the annual accountings by filing a petition with the Court. After all parties agree to a final account, and with the consent of the Court, the contents of the estate can be distributed in their entirety, and the estate can be closed. Forms:
Thirty days after the death of a testator, an individual named as an executor/executrix by the testator whose estate consists entirely of personal property with a value that does not exceed fifteen thousand dollars may file a statement with the Probate and Family Court and be named as the voluntary executor of the estate. A motor vehicle can also be included in the estate, even if the value of the motor vehicle causes the value of the estate to exceed fifteen thousand dollars. This is an informal proceeding and the signature of a judge is not required. The voluntary executor/executrix shall be responsible for the payment of the debts of the estate from its assets, receive any assets due the estate, and distribute the property of the estate according to the instructions provided in the will. Forms:
The administration of an estate is the court-supervised management and settlement of the estate of a person who has died without a will. A person who dies not having prepared a will, has died intestate. Without a will, no executor/executrix is named to distribute the contents of the estate. Any person, including creditors, having an interest in the estate may petition the Probate and Family Court to be appointed the administrator of the estate. The petition must list all persons with an interest in the estate who qualify under the laws of intestacy. The Court then issues a citation to the petitioner who mails a copy to all persons listed on the petition and publishes it in the newspaper designated by the Court. Persons having an interest in the estate may file an objection to the petition. The administrator is appointed by decree of the Court. The executor must prepare an inventory of the contents and value of the estate, and an annual accounting of the increase or decrease of the estate's value. Interested parties may contest the inventory or the annual accountings by filing a petition with the Court. After all parties agree to a final account, and with the consent of the Court, the contents of the estate can be distributed in their entirety, and the estate can be closed. Forms:
Thirty days after the date of death, any person with an interest in an estate of an individual who has died intestate, where the estate consists entirely of personal property with a value not in excess of fifteen thousand dollars, may file a statement with the Probate and Family Court and be named as the voluntary administrator of that estate. A motor vehicle, regardless of its value, may also be included in the estate. This is an informal proceeding which does not require the signature of a judge. The voluntary administrator shall be responsible for the payment of the debts of the estate from the estate's assets, received any assets due the estate, and distribute the property of the estate to the intestate's survivors. Forms:
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