Identifying nonprobate assets can be a tricky issue that the executor or administrator must sort through. The default rule in Georgia is that all assets are probate assets unless there is an exception. As a result, the personal representative must understand what those exceptions a...
Many times, situations where you suspect that the person holding a power of attorney has acted improperly wind up being handled after a death has occurred. Many people are not aware of this, but the power of attorney terminates upon death. From that point forward, the only way to deal with the decea...
What happens if you have a spouse that dies in the hospital? Does Georgia probate law say that you are responsible for the bills? This is a common question our office receives, and is often a concern on the minds of family members. The short answer is that, generally speaking, Georgia probate...
If you are an executor or administrator, getting clear on what assets go through probate is an important task because you have a responsibility to gather and protect all of the estate's assets. If you are not clear on what those assets are, you will not know when you are doing your job well...
Under Georgia probate law, when a person has passed away, there are certain requirements that must be met to properly open an estate for the deceased. The first is to file a petition with the court that has true and correct information. There are several different types of petitions that can be fil...
Determining what assets are included in an estate after someone passes away, is a key issue. All property that the deceased owned must be put into one of two categories: it is either a probate asset or a nonprobate asset. The property is handled differently depending on which category tha...
The idea that a probate creditor could seek payment from family members is a common fear in probate situations. This is made even worse when a probate creditor pops up demanding payment after an estate has been closed and the funds distributed to the family. Who has to pay them? Fortunately, ...
“Can a will be contested?” This is a question we see a lot at our office. To answer the can a will be contested question, we're going to discuss 7 common scenarios where a will is challenged. If you find one or more of these situations apply in your case, a will contest may be a go...
If you are an heir or beneficiary of an estate, and believe the Executor is not fulfilling their responsibilities you may have a right to challenge their actions in probate court. An Executor owes certain duties to the estate. The main responsibilities of an Executor are to act i...
In today's article, we're going to discuss how to contest a will. We'll also cover some of the key legal reasons to contest a will and how the caveat process works. So how do will contests work? First, let’s cover terminology, when you file a legal objection to a w...
A petition for discharge of personal representative is something to take very seriously. This petition asks the court to release the personal representative of his or her duties to the estate. As a result, it can have serious consequences. Most importantly, the personal representativ...
Can you contest a will? This is a common question in our office. We're going to talk about some important practical considerations to think about when you are deciding whether you should challenge a will or not. We'll look at some common misconceptions about will contests ...
