Can Someone Handle Probate Without A Qualified Probate Attorney?
Under Texas law, you cannot handle a traditional probate without an attorney. If you are doing a small estate affidavit, that can be done without an attorney. Filing an affidavit of heirship in the deed records can be done without an attorney. You can involve a title company, but it’s recommended to do it with an attorney. The reason why you need an attorney in a traditional probate is because the estate is not a person. The administrator or executor is not the estate. Since the estate is not a person, you have to have an attorney there representing the estate.
What Are Some Pitfalls People May Face When Trying To Handle Probate On Their Own?
In traditional probate, the court is going to shut you down if you try to handle a probate on your own. They are going to tell you to find an attorney. If you’re doing a small estate affidavit, a main pitfall would be not filling out the paperwork properly. Travis County has a beautiful layout. You don’t need an attorney to help you with that. Those are very minimal, but we are happy to help when somebody wants their small estate affidavit done right. Sometimes we get clients that tell us that they filed the paperwork for a small estate affidavit but it was rejected. The court doesn’t tell you why. When we look it over, we tell them what they need to do or why it doesn’t fit. There are some specific requirements, such as there is no real estate in the estate unless it is homestead.
If there is real estate involved and it is homestead, the people who are getting it are supposed to have lived there and be homesteading at the same time. If you don’t fit that requirement, then you can’t do a small estate affidavit. Moreover, assets have to be under the cap of $75,000. You also have to list all of the creditors and debts. If the assets equal more than that, you can’t go that route. Getting a small estate affidavit done can be difficult, even more difficult than normal probate.
The same applies to an affidavit of heirship. It is not as reliable. Many people do it, but you have a higher chance of having issues than if you just go to probate. Everybody can rely on the probate process without question.
What Sets You And Your Firm Apart In Guiding Clients Through The Probate Process In Texas?
Part of what sets our firm apart in guiding clients through the probate process in Texas is cost. Our goal is to not be expensive. I know that there are cheaper firms out there, but they don’t fully support their clients. We are a small, mostly family-based law office. We are here to help people. We are here because we want to provide for ourselves and our clients. We are not here to make the big bucks. I like helping people in unique situations where their family is not present and they can’t get the property out of the house to sell it. Or, when there are unique things that many other firms walk away from because that type of situation is something they don’t want to help with. By contrast, we enjoy helping individuals and families in any way we can.
For more information on Handling Probate Without An Attorney In TX, an initial consultation is your next best step. Get the information and legal answers you are seeking by calling (512) 829-6100 today.
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