“Probate” is the process by which assets without a beneficiary are transferred from the deceased to the beneficiary established either through a Will or the laws of the State of Ohio. Probate is the name of the court that manages the legal transfer of the assets. If the deceased has beneficiaries or transfer-on-death designations on the assets owned at the time of their death, then there is no need to access the Probate Court to make a transfer of the assets. If the deceased held all of their assets in a trust, then the assets remain in the trust and will transfer to the stated beneficiaries of the trust under the authority of the Trustee.
If the deceased owned assets at the time of their death that must be transferred under the authority of the Probate Court, then an application to the Court must be made. The Court appoints the Administrator (if there is no Will) or the Executor (if there is a Will) to be responsible for the transfer of the assets to beneficiaries. The Administrator/Executor must provide an Inventory of the assets of the deceased that are transferred by the Court. Once those assets are gathered and distributed, the Administrator/Executor must provide an Account to the Court showing how the assets were distributed. This process can take 6–9 months or longer. To understand more how we can help you, give us a call to setup an consultation.