After Death Estate Planning and Estate Administration
When a loved one passes away, families are often left dealing with legal, financial, and administrative issues at the same time they are grieving. The process can be confusing, especially when there is uncertainty about what needs to be done, who has authority to act, and how assets are supposed to be transferred.
We help families navigate probate, estate administration, and trust administration from start to finish. If there is no trust in place, probate may be required to transfer assets titled in the decedent’s name. That process involves court filings, notices, deadlines, and strict procedures that must be followed correctly. We guide personal representatives through each step to ensure the estate is handled properly and efficiently. Or we can act as a fiduciary if needed or desired.
Sometimes new sub-trusts or trust shares need to be created or activated after death, such as beneficiary asset protection trusts, spendthrift trusts, discretionary trusts, support trusts, or special needs trusts. Sometimes old trusts need to be terminated, which can require a non-judicial settlement agreement and sometimes court approval.
All trusts require careful administration. Trustees have legal responsibilities, including managing assets, paying debts and taxes, and making distributions according to the trust terms. Some trust administration avoids probate (if the trust was created during your lifetime via a living trust), and some trusts require court oversight and sometime ongoing court supervision (if the trust was created via your last will and testament). Mistakes can create liability for the trustee and problems for beneficiaries.
We also help identify and coordinate non-probate assets, such as retirement accounts, life insurance, and accounts with beneficiary designations, to make sure everything is aligned and handled correctly. Our goal is to reduce stress, avoid delays, and prevent costly errors during a difficult time.
Estate Administration for Attorneys Across the DC Metro Region
We serve estate administration and trust administration clients throughout the Northern Virginia region, the Fredericksburg, VA region, Suburban Maryland, and the District of Columbia with offices in: Fairfax, VA; Fredericksburg, VA: Rockville, MD; Annapolis, MD; and Washington, DC.