Reasons to Avoid Probate
Probate Court is Time Consuming.
Timeliness is the first of many reasons to avoid probate court in Massachusetts. Indeed, the decedent’s assets will freeze upon their death. These assets will remain inaccessible until the Probate Court issues letters of authority. This process usually takes 6-8 weeks from the date of filing depending on the county.
Then, the estate will need to stay open for at least one year from the decedent’s date of death. This is because there is a one-year statutory creditor claim periods for all estates in Massachusetts. Finally, you can close the estate after the one-year mark. However, you’ll need to file a petition and account of the entire estate for review by a judge. This typically takes another one to two months. All in all, the entire process typically lasts 14-18 months for the personal representative and heirs.
Probate Court is Costly.
Fees are another reason to avoid probate. There is a filing fee for the petition, and you would typically need the help of an attorney to file said petition. However, many people do not realize that you also need to publish a notice or citation in a local newspaper. This fee can range from as little as $200 in more rural areas to as much as $1,000 in the city. Finally, upon completing the probate process, you will need to pay a closing fee. This fee is prorated based on the asset size of the estate. Typically, an estate going through probate court will cost anywhere from $4,000 to $10,000 between filing fees and attorney fees.
All of your Heirs will be Notified.
Probate Court is a formal process which requires all of your heirs be directly notified of the proceedings. This creates an additional reason to avoid probate. If you have an estranged family member who you wrote out of your will, they will still receive notice of the estate’s petition and given a window of time to file an objection with the Court. Furthermore, if we cannot locate the estranged family member, it can result in delays and complications with approving the probate petition.
The Probate Docket is Public Record.
The probate court will place your Will, Death Certificate, and every petition filed with the probate court on the docket, making them a public record. The probate docket can be accessed both in-person and online by any member of the public. Furthermore, they do not need to give any reason for accessing the record, it is a part of the public domain. This is another important reason to avoid probate.
Additional Reasons to Avoid Probate
Finally, there are additional reasons for why you should want to avoid Probate. This includes adding stress to your personal representative, increasing Court oversight, and raising the likelihood of lawsuits. All of these reasons stress the importance of having a fully funded revocable trust to avoid probate.
