Experienced guidance in settling an estate through the California Courts

Unfortunately, if your loved one dies without a trust in place you may have to go through probate in the courts to settle their affairs and distribute assets to the beneficiaries or heirs. The last thing you want to do when you are dealing with loss is to also deal with this long, sometimes controversial, expensive legal process.

Transferring property through probate can be difficult, especially if you have no knowledge of the laws and the courtroom process.  Probate is a complex series of rules, forms, judges, court rooms, and creditors’ claims. You will save time and money by using a firm that has the courtroom experience to get probates filed, completed, and closed.  Breunig Law, Inc. has represented clients in probate matters all over California.

RESOURCE: What to do when someone dies

If your loved one passed away with only a will or there are no signed planning documents at all, then the estate will most likely need to go through probate. Typically, if the individual owns assets of more than $166,250 (2021) or own real estate in California no matter what the value, a probate will be required. It is a long, tedious, and sometimes overwhelming process, so you want to have an experienced attorney that will give you proper and thoughtful guidance for the duration of the probate and final distribution of assets process.

When a Probate is typically required:

• Settling of estate’s real estate where a trust is not in place
• Transferring title of assets to the surviving spouse without a will or trust
• Transferring assets that were left out of a trust through a formal probate or Heggstad Petition

Probate means that there is a court case that deals with:

• Deciding if a will exists and if it is valid
• Locating and notifying the decedent’s heirs or beneficiaries
• Locating and notifying all potential creditors of the decedent
• Determining the value of the decedent’s property
• Researching and dealing with creditor claims
• Transferring the decedent’s property to legal heirs or named beneficiaries

The Probate process will often take from 6 months to 2 years or longer. Often there are disputes among creditors and beneficiaries which cause delays in completing the court process. Choosing the right attorney can reduce the risk of these delays

When you choose Breunig Law, Inc., your attorney will protect and guide you through the process of fulfilling the duties of the personal representative, prepare and file all legal documents, and appear at each hearing during the process to represent and protect you. The goal is to make things as smooth as possible, prevent you from breaching any fiduciary duties, and settle the estate as quickly as possible.

Breunig Law provides compassionate, skilled, and experienced services you can trust and counseling to get through the many steps involved and to minimize the stress of probate.

• Preparation and filing all necessary petitions, pleadings, and other required documents
• Guiding and protecting the personal representative through their legal responsibilities
• Marshaling and valuing all the assets of the estate
• Determining which assets are probate assets
• Resolving any potential disagreements and disputes between beneficiaries and creditors
• Transferring title and distributing assets of the estate to the heirs or beneficiaries

Breunig Law will prepare a plan to handle your probate in the most efficient way possible. Contact us today for a confidential consultation at 916-672-2042 or info@breuniglaw.com.