Step 1) Handle funeral arrangements

The funeral arrangements will be simple under the following two scenarios:

1. You know that there is no will (intestate) and you are the next of kin
   
   
   • Proceed with what you know were the wishes (if any) for the funeral arrangements
   
   
2. If you have the will (testate), you are the named executor, and you plan to serve:
   
   
   • Follow the directions (if any) in the will to the best of your ability subject to constraints of money, time, and reason.
     

Life is more complicated when the will is not easily found and there is some evidence that one exists or that the copy that you have is not the most recent one.  The primary complications here are as follows:

• Where is the latest copy of the will?
• Is the executor for the estate well defined?
  

If no obvious copy of the will is available then check the following:

• Check with any attorney that the decedent might have created a will with to get a copy.
• See if there is a safety deposit box with the will.
  
  
  • If the will is in a safety deposit box then in Washington state you will have to petition the court to have the safety deposit box opened if you do not have access to it.

If you find a will then check with the attorney who prepared the will to make sure that it is the latest copy to his knowledge.

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To facilitate probate you want to make sure that:

1. The will is easily available and indicates clearly who the executor will be
   
   
   • Keep a certified copy of the will in your files if the will is in a safety deposit box
     
   
   
2. The executors specified in the will are informed that they are potential executors of the will
   
   
   • They should be familiar with where to find the will
     
   
   

Overview of the Probate Process

The probate process for virtually all English common law countries is very similar and the steps are outlined below.  This blog will give details for probate that are specific to Washington State in the USA:

1. Handle funeral arrangements
2. Determine if probate is necessary
3. Prepare probate documentation
4. Open probate
5. Handle estate
6. Close probate

I will attempt to cover the probate process and what you need to do, but I am not a lawyer and can't give legal advice, please consult legal advice if you are going to be involved in the probate process.

While the concepts of probate are relatively simple, the devil is in the details.  The more that one prepares the executor of their estate the simpler and easier probate will be.


One of the key elements of probate is whether the decedent has a will or not.  Someone with a will is a testator, and his probate will be testate.  If you die without a will then you are intestate.

Do you need a will?
No one is required to have a will.  However, if the division of your estate makes a difference to you then you owe it to yourself to make sure that you have a will.

If you are going to create a will then it should:

• Be self proving, i.e. witnessed by generally two signatures
• Indicate who can serve as Executor or Personal Representative (ExPR)
• Give clear indications of any funeral wishes

Make sure that the ExPRs:

• know that they may be called upon to serve
• know where the will is, even if they are unfamiliar with the instructions
• know which will is current if there are more than one

The next article will talk about the funeral arrangements.

Probate Basics

Probate is latin for a thing proved. When someone dies the government wants to make sure that the estate is divided up legally. Hence, probate is about proving that a deceased's affairs are handled properly.

Odds are the first time you hear about probate is when you become the personal representative (a.k.a executor or administrator) of someone's estate. If you are lucky then you've had time to prepare and are aware of the assets of the estate; most likely, you were caught off guard and are busy with funeral arrangements and a whirlwind of activities you never dreamed of.

Probate is not difficult, but you will quickly learn that it is not about transferring the estate's assets to the heirs. Nope. Probate is about first making sure that the government and the deceased's creditors get anything they are owed before dividing the rest of the estate between the heirs.

You can probate an estate without an attorney. Probate is a legal process and there is much paperwork, but none of the documentation is difficult to produce. It will take you longer to learn about the probate process then it will take you to handle it yourself.

I'm not an attorney and can't give legal advice, but 90% of Canadians and 10% of Americans probate estates without the services of an attorney. See the DIY section of my website for pointers on probate in Washington for the US and British Columbia in Canada.

The next few blog entries will attempt to demystify the probate process which is common to countries using English common law.