Sugar Land, TX Probate & Trust Administration Lawyer

Legal Help Administering an Estate With Confidence in Sugar Land, TX

Being an estate administrator can be challenging, both from a legal and emotional perspective. If you are currently tasked with probating a will or administering a trust, it is likely because someone close to you has just passed away. Most successor trustees or executors are grieving during the administration process, making a difficult job even harder. Getting the right legal support can make all the difference.

Attorney Vicky Fealy is highly experienced in guiding people through probate and trust administration. While you likely understand the decedent's wishes, Attorney Fealy understands the legal processes that need to take place. The Fealy Law Firm, PC can offer you guidance and support while the estate you are in charge of is in the administration phase. Whether you need to move a will through probate efficiently or have a long-term trust to oversee, she will offer you quality legal support throughout the entire process.

Probate Attorney in Sugar Land, TX

Probate can be an incredibly complex and sometimes slow legal procedure. If you are the executor, you are likely responsible for introducing the will to the probate court and overseeing the probate process. You may also need to handle any will contests or probate litigation that may arise.

During probate, you will first need to submit the will to probate, post a public notice, and verify the will, which means showing its validity. The next step is to inventory the estate property, which can take several months depending on the nature and amount of property the decedent owned. Notifying the beneficiaries and the decedent's creditors is also a necessary step. You may need to pay the decedent's outstanding debts using a share of their estate property, which can be quite complicated in some situations, as it impacts what the beneficiaries will actually receive.

Distributing assets and formally closing the probate case is the final step.

Trust Administration Lawyer in Fort Bend County, TX

Administering a trust can be a fairly brief process in cases where a trust is used largely in place of a will. In other cases, trust administration can last for many years when the trust creator has chosen to make distributions gradually. For example, the trust docment may state that each beneficiary is to receive a certain sum of money annually until the trust runs out.

The good news is that you do not need to go through the formalities of probate or in most cases, involve any court. As the successor trustee, you can likely begin making distributions right away. Estate litigation is less likely when the decedent used a trust rather than a will, so you are unlikely to deal with a contest.

However, if you are administering a long-term trust, you have a fiduciary duty that could involve more than making distributions. The trust document may give you the responsibility of reinvesting trust money in order to preserve or even grow the funds contained in the trust. If this is the case, you could benefit from the guidance of an attorney who can help you make sound and reliable financial decisions about how to manage the trust funds.

You may also have a certain amount of discretion in making distributions. For example, the decedent may have instructed you to make distributions to his or her beneficiaries as is reasonable and necessary to help them through life. You may need to decide, for example, when a beneficiary's emergency situation or entreprenurial goals warrants making a discretionary distribution. A lawyer can help with this decision-making process.

Contact a Sugar Land, TX Estate Administration Lawyer

The Fealy Law Firm, PC can help you navigate probate or trust administration with confidence. Skilled Fort Bend County, TX probate and trust administration attorney Vicky Fealy will carefully walk you through the process. Contact us at 713-526-5220 for a complimentary consultation.