Avoiding Probate Delays With a Well-Planned Estate
When you pass away, you want your family members and loved ones to navigate your death with minimal stress and pain. Unfortunately, probate can throw a wrench into the entire process. While your loved ones are working through their grief, they also have urgent legal matters that need attending to. Probate can put enormous pressure on loved ones during their most vulnerable time and cut into the inheritance you worked so hard to earn. That’s why it’s important to work with a team of estate planning attorneys in Oklahoma City. Learn more about how you can avoid probate issues with careful planning, and when you’re ready to start your estate plan, call Entz Burton & Associates at 800-633-7230.
If you want to make the estate administration process as easy and streamlined as possible for your loved ones, there’s a lot you can do. In fact, much of this process is entirely within your control. As you begin your estate planning journey, you should understand the basics of probate, get an overview of what your estate plan should contain, and figure out how to avoid probate delays.
The Basics of Probate in Oklahoma
Probate is a process that aims to protect a decedent’s assets and ensure that their estate is properly managed prior to asset distribution. When an individual passes away, the debts they owe at the time of their death become owed by the estate. A big part of probate is finding lenders, validating their claims, and paying out their claims from the estate.
The court has several goals with the probate process. First, it wants to ensure the validity of the will. Second, it needs to assign an executor to handle the probate process and the distribution of assets. Finally, once all outstanding claims have been handled, the court oversees the distribution of assets.
While this process sounds fairly straightforward, it can take months—and in some cases, years. The more assets an individual has and the more beneficiaries they have, the more likely it is that issues will arise.
Elements of a Well-Planned Estate
It’s clear that streamlining the probate process should be a key part of planning your estate. In fact, in many cases you can bypass the probate process. This ensures that your beneficiaries spend minimal time dealing with the legal side of your estate.
While every estate plan is different, there are several elements that you’ll see in many estate plans:
- A thorough will: Each state has its own requirements for a valid will, so ensure that yours meets Oklahoma’s requirements. Your formal will must use specific language to assign property to each beneficiary. You must state that it is your last will and sign it in the presence of two witnesses, both of whom must also sign it.
- Trusts: There are many different types of trusts. One of the key benefits of a trust is the fact that it bypasses probate, keeping your loved ones out of court. Many people opt for a revocable living trust, which allows them to continue benefiting from their assets while keeping those assets out of probate after their death.
- Beneficiary designations: Some accounts require beneficiary designations. They then pass to your named beneficiary immediately upon your death. These accounts include life insurance policies, retirement accounts, and bank accounts.
- Financial POA: Remember, your estate plan doesn’t just plan for your death—it also plans for your incapacitation. Should you be alive but unable to handle your finances, the person with power of attorney will take care of them for you.
- Healthcare directive: A healthcare directive allows a named individual to make healthcare decisions on your behalf. It can also specify the types of lifesaving care you do or do not wish to receive.
Minimizing Probate Delays and Concerns
If avoiding probate or probate disputes is a top priority for you, make sure to disclose that to your estate planning lawyer. They can structure your estate plan in a way that either skips probate completely or keeps most assets out of probate. After your estate plan is complete, make sure to review and update it regularly to account for deaths, new family members, and changes in relationships.
Clear communication with beneficiaries is also important. If everyone knows what to expect upon your death, they will be less likely to dispute the will or otherwise drag out the process.
Ready to Start Your Estate Planning? Call Entz Burton & Associates Now
It’s never too early to begin your estate plan. Let our estate planning lawyers help you create an estate plan that honors the legacy you’ve built. Give us a call at 800-633-7230 or reach out online.
Attorney J. Michael Entz at Entz Burton & Associates is an experience lawyer in estate planning law, business formation and asset protection serving the families in Oklahoma City and Weatherford office.
