Limited Clients. Proven Results.
The Probate Attorneys at Stiefvater Law limit the number of clients we represent in order to provide efficient and delicate service to our clients who are suffering the loss of a loved one. Probate is the legal process through which a decedent’s estate is administered when a person dies.
When an individual dies with probate assets, those assets must be probated. Probate is a legal process that can be slow and expensive. Many people develop an estate plan in order to avoid probate. By avoiding probate, the heirs and the estate can often save time and money. The process of distributing the decedent’s assets according to their wishes is often streamlined with an estate plan.
At death, a person’s assets are broken down into two categories: probate assets and non-probate assets. One of our Probate Attorneys will sit down with you and determine which assets are considered probate assets and which assets are considered non-probate assets. Probate assets are just what they sound like – assets that must go through the probate process to transfer ownership. Similarly, non-probate assets are those assets that do not need to be probated to transfer ownership.
Probate assets, among other items, consists of individual assets, tenant in common assets, Assets with predeceased beneficiaries or no beneficiary named, and assets left out of a trust. Most non-probate assets are those with named beneficiaries.
Assets with predeceased beneficiaries or no beneficiary named are assets where a beneficiary was named but died before the owner and no alternate beneficiary is named. This also occurs when the decedent failed to name a beneficiary to assets such as life insurance, retirement accounts, annuities, and 401(k) accounts.
Non-probate assets include assets with named beneficiaries, including payable on death or transfer on death, joint accounts, certain forms of real estate ownership, and items left properly titled to a trust.
Call Probate Lawyer Robert Stiefvater for a free consultation and to discuss your specific probate needs.
If a loved one has died without a will, they are considered intestate. In this situation, the laws of the State of Ohio direct who gets what from the decedent. The law does not make great efforts to protect step-children. Provisions give great deference to the surviving spouse, children, and other lineal descendants.
The law provides for many simple and not so simple situations. What follows are some example provisions from the Ohio Revised Code:
2105.02 Construction of living and died.
When, in this chapter, a person is described as living, it means that the person was living at the time of the death of the intestate from whom the estate came and that the person lived for at least one hundred twenty hours following the death of the intestate, and when a person is described as having died, it means that the person died before such intestate or that the person failed to live for at least one hundred twenty hours following the death of the intestate.
The passing of a loved one is overwhelming. Our Probate Law Firm will take great care in the probate process. We will handle the legal process so you can focus on the healing process.
Call the Probate Attorneys at Stiefvater Law to find out if we are currently taking on new clients. We are the Probate Lawyers in .
Cities in :
Zip Codes in :