Page 32 - Example Guide

3. Vehicles
4. Retirement Accounts 5. Annuities
6. Insurance Policies
7. Valuable Collections
The above documents and information will assist your attorney in drafting the probate or administration petition for your loved one’s estate. It is important to note that the IRS form 706 - the estate tax return - must be filed within nine months of the death of the decedent (or within the six months extension window if one is timely applied for).
The probate or administration processes are formal judicial proceedings which take place in the decedent’s county’s Surrogate Court. If you are the nominated executor, or a person eligible to serve as administrator, you should consult with your attorney and provide the information and documents listed above. Your attorney will prepare the petition for probate or administration. Filing fees are paid on a sliding scale depending on the size of the estate.
Under New York State law, certain people are entitled to notice of the probate or administration of the estate - namely the beneficiaries, fiduciaries, and “heirs at law” of the decedent. The probate or administration process will be substantially simplified if these individuals consent to the relief requested in the probate or administration petition, and waive the issuance of formal process. This will be the case where there are no objections to the appointment of the name fiduciary or applicant, and there are no objections to the disposition of assets provided for in the will. If the persons entitled to notice do not consent to the relief requested in the petition and waive the issuance of formal process, then the Court will issue a “citation” to appear in Court on a certain day, and each non- consenting person must be formally served in accordance with New York State law.
Presuming the administration or probate petition is accepted, the executor or administrator will receive their letters testamentary from the Surrogate’s Court. Original certificates will be required for a variety of purposes, and so we advise
Page 32 - M. A. Connell Funeral Home