by Tom Olofsson, Attorney at Law, www.MyTrustLawyer.com (773) 905-1193
Probate is a court supervised process which helps make sure that your final bills are paid, that your final wishes are known, and that your stuff gets to those you intend to get it.
There is nothing wrong with the process. Probate allows for the orderly passing of assets from generation to generation.
The reasons which most people give for wanting to avoid probate can be boiled down to these:
1. Probate takes too long. Probate generally takes between 1 and 2 years. During the process the family must relive the death of their loved one with each new letter and each meeting with the executor. If the process can be made shorter then the family will be able to come to closure more quickly.
2. Probate costs too much. The fees for Probate in Illinois can average around 5% of the estate. With home values over $300,000, in many cases, it is easy to see why people would like more of their money to go to their children and less to court costs and fees.
3. Probate is not private. The courts are public and so are most court records. Many people I talk with keep their financial matters private during their lives and tell me that they would like to keep their information private even after their deaths. It makes sense, then, to stay keep the estate distribution process private. This can be done by staying out of court.