Attorney Probate Services
Lower Fees
Faster Cash
Most law firms use a filing service that can be time-consuming.
We don’t have to wait for snail mail
We can use options of the many internet real estate firms that will buy the house for cash, or we have references to the real estate agents in the area that can turn a home quickly.
Other difficult assets, like mineral interests, family farms, etc. We don’t need to wait until they are sold to realize some cash for distributions. We have many investors that are willing to loan money to the estate.
Most states require a 4 to 6 month creditor period to give potential creditors the opportunities to come forward with a claim. And, IRS and State tax filings can be a year off. Once again, we don’t need to hold back the entire Estate for these time periods. We can estimate these liabilities and make sure we hold that amount back, but go ahead and distribute the bulk of the Estate quickly.
Probate is the Court supervised process in following a Will to transfer assets from a decedent to the beneficiaries in the most cost-efficient manner after all debts, taxes, and liabilities have been satisfied.
Executor
The person designated in the Will to settle the Estate. Some states call it a “Personal Representative”
Trustee & Successor Trustee
The person designated inside of a Trust to settle the Trust after the death of the creator of the Trust, the Trustor.
Beneficiary
The individual(s) named in the Will or the Trust to receive the cash distributions from the Trust or the Probate Estate after they have been settled.
We are not simply a filing service. Your documents are prepared and processed by experienced probate Attorneys utilzing cutting edge technology and streamlined software. We’ll get you more money quicker.
“We’ll get you more money and do it faster than the competition!”
Most law firms have only one Paralegal to two or three or more Attorneys. We strive to have the reverse. Two or three Paralegals for one Attorney
In many locations are Attorneys and Paralegals work from home or work in Warehouse space. No expensive cherry wood law offices.
We have our own Paralegal School focusing only on Probate. All other Paralegal Schools are general in nature. Because our Paralegals and Attorneys are trained by us, we have them acting as more expensive Paralegals and Attorneys at more competitive salaries.
Although Probate Documents are confusing, they can be automated. This eliminates custom drafting. Also, information is entered once, in one place, and automated to all of the documents.
You can save the Estate Paralegal and Attorney time by entering all of the information online.
Although many of our clients do not want to charge Executor fees, we strongly encourage it. Your services will take a significant amount of time and we want to make sure it is worth your time. Also, you have liability as an Executor if you make mistakes. Our job is to prevent those mistakes and make sure you are compensated for your liability risks.
a. Your fees as the Executor comes out of the Estate before anyone else gets a distribution. In most cases, your fees are similar to our fees and in some cases, your fees are more than our fees. We will help you keep a log of all of the time you spend and reimburse you for that time at an hourly rate of $75 to $125 per hour depending on your qualifications. (have a footnote that fees must always be reasonable and in some cases, we will have them approved by the Probate Court)
b. In most cases, your fees are income tax deductible on both the Federal and State Income Tax Returns.
c. As such, the cost of your fees to the Estate is only 60% to 70% of your hourly rate.
d. We obtain releases of liabilities from the beneficiaries to protect your fees and your actions.
Paid in conjunction with your fees. In many cases, fees end up being similar to your fees. Generally, we charge a blended fee:
a. Flat fees for Probate Documents
i. Court Filings,
ii. And Tax Filings.
b. Hourly Rates of Paralegals and Attorneys for other functions:
i. Court Appearances
ii. Client meetings and correspondences
iii. Liquidating assets
iv. Handling creditor claims and disputes
v. Handling disputes among the beneficiaries.
c. In some cases, we are happy to provide a Flat Fee Quote if you prefer.
We help the beneficiaries understand that your fees combined with our fees in most cases is still far less than the fees would be if a bank or trust company served as the Executor. Take a look at the fee schedule for most banks when they serve as a corporate Executor. These fee schedules are online or can be easily received if you request a copy.