It’s quite common to hear people complain about the pain of the probate system. Probate is commonly understood to be a long and expensive process, one that wastes time, money and energy. Though many people may be familiar with such common complaints, few understand how long the Minnesota probate process really lasts and how much it can…
Category: Probate Lawyer
MN Probate and Estate Planning: What Lessons Can Be Learned From Philip Seymour Hoffman’s Estate Plan?
Philip Seymour Hoffman’s unexpected death at the age of 46 shocked the country and garnered headlines for weeks. Now that the dust has begun to settle, details of Hoffman’s estate plan have started to emerge. Though Hoffman thankfully had the foresight to create a basic estate plan to ensure that his loved ones were cared…
Minnesota Uniform Probate Code
Probate law is a function of state governments. A Minnesota probate lawyer will tell you that this means that there is little or no federal law related to probate administration. There is law related to federal taxation, yes. However, state law governs the actual probate proceedings. The statutory authority for probate administration in Minnesota is…
Minnesota Probate Attorneys Fees, Burden of Proof
In an interesting case out of Minnesota, the Minnesota Court of Appeals affirmed in part and reversed in part a trial court order denying an attorney’s submission of his total attorney fees in a high conflict probate proceeding. In the case of In re Estate of Mary Ann Reiman, A11-203 (Minn.App. 01/03/12)(unpublished), the appeals court…
What is probate?
As an estate planning lawyer, I have been asked “what is probate” on more than one occassion. I’ve also tried to answer that question on this blog. Probate is the process by which the instructions contained in a person’s Will are administered in the court system. It is not something to be scared of. It is…
Probate Law | What is Ademption?
In the field of estate planning and probate law, the legal doctrine known as “ademption” is an important construct to understand. You should speak with a good estate planning lawyer in your state for further information about the laws where you live. The basic definition of ademption is provided once again by my favorite law…
Probate Law | What Does “Probate Property” Mean?
The term probate and probate property is, in my opinion, largely misunderstood by the public at large. Unfortunately, only a good probate lawyer will typically understand these complicated legal terms. Why is it important to understand the meaning of the term “probate property”? Because it has a significant impact on the administration of an estate…