During the first couple of weeks after your loved one dies, you do not need to rush to begin the administration process. The most important thing is that you take whatever time you need with your family to make the necessary funeral or memorial arrangements and to support each other through the emotional transition.  During this time, you can look for your loved one’s documents, the Will and Trust, if any, and wait for the death certificates from the funeral home.  With these in hand, and when you are ready, you can reach out to begin the process.

Whether the estate will be administered through the probate court, or privately through a trust, the first phase involves gathering information about all of the assets owned by the deceased loved one. This can take some time, depending on the details of the situation. This phase includes not only gathering the information, but also gaining access to the assets by following the procedures required by the asset custodian—bank, brokerage firm, insurance company, etc.  It is during this phase that you will be able to determine whether a probate court proceeding will be required.

While you may have many communications with the beneficiaries of the Will or Trust from very early in the process, your more formal communication will begin once you have a firm grasp of the assets and what will be required to administer the estate. At this point you will more formally notify the beneficiaries of their interest in the estate, and communicate what you will need from them in order to move through the process. This will depend on whether a probate proceeding is needed. Good communication with beneficiaries is key to helping make the process less stressful for everyone.   

If a probate proceeding is necessary, I will help you by preparing all of the needed documents to open the estate and comply with the court requirements. This will involve preparing a Petition for Probate, a List of Interested Persons, and Inventory of Assets and various other filings depending on the facts of the estate. The process can take anywhere from six months (rare) to two years or more. Many variables determine the time frame, all of which we will review in the initial consultation.

If the estate can be administered entirely through a trust, then the process can be quicker, with far fewer formalities. The terms of the trust will dictate what is to happen and when.

There are a number of tax filings that will need to be completed during the administration process. The final personal income tax return for the decedent must be filed during the normal tax reporting period. There may also be a tax return due for the estate or trust itself. Basically, once your loved one dies, any income earned on the assets from the date of death until final distribution is taxed and paid by the estate or trust as an entity. This is called the “fiduciary income tax return.” If the estate is valued at more than $5 million (Vermont’s threshold for estate tax), there will also be an Estate Tax Return filing requirement.  There may be no actual taxes due, but the filing requirement alone can delay the administration process significantly. All tax filings must be completed before final distribution can take place.

Prior to final distribution, generally the Executor or Trustee prepares an accounting of all of the financial activity that took place during administration. The level of detail and formality required of this accounting will vary from one estate to another.

Depending on the facts of the estate, there may have been one or more preliminary distributions made earlier in the process. Once all tax reporting has been completed, and all debts and expenses of the estate have been paid, then the Executor or Trustee can move toward final distribution and closing the estate administration.  If there is a probate proceeding, this involves seeking the court’s permission for final distribution. If there is only a trust administration, then this involves getting the beneficiaries to sign a document acknowledging receipt of their distribution and releasing the Trustee from liability.