Probate Administration

Where an Illinois resident dies not leaving a will or leaves a will rather than a trust, many of the decedent’s assets fall into the purview and jurisdiction of the Illinois probate court. Probate is a court monitored process in which the administrator (appointed by court) or executor (nominated in the will) of the estate identifies all of decedent’s assets within the probate jurisdiction, pays off the decedent’s debts and expenses (including expense related to administration), and distributes the remaining assets according to decedent’s will or Illinois probate code or, often, a combination of both.

Probate administration tends to be overwhelming and challenging for surviving families: on top of managing grief and loss, they find themselves thrust into a lengthy (12+ months) process that is frequently confusing, administratively arduous, and conceptually foreign in its tax and legal aspects.

We will help you draft and file the many requisite pleadings with the probate court, obtain various authorization and orders from the court throughout the probate process, transfer title of the decedent’s real estate, and work with the financial institutions to gather and distribute the decedent’s assets,