Transparent answers to your concerns
What Are Disadvantages of Probate?
- Privacy Loss: Once the probate process starts, the will, the debts, the identify of the family members, and what each will receive all becomes public record and anyone can view the court file.
- Will Contests: If an heir is displeased with the distribution set forth in the Will, the probate process gives that person an easy way to shut down or delay the process. Sometimes an unscrupulous person will make a fraudulent claim simply to try to force a financial settlement. If your estate does not go through probate, that same person will have a much more difficult time impacting the process.
- Spousal Share: If the estate goes through probate, the spouse has a statutory right to a share of the estate even if he/she was not named or was intended to be disinherited. Again, this right only applies in the probate process which can be a reason for using a trust if the spouse is disabled or in a nursing home and receiving State benefits.
- Costs: The total cost of the probate process statistically runs from 5 to 8 percent of the gross estate, although it can be more in disputed or complex cases. This is typically more than you would pay to administer a Trust.
- More than One Probate: If the decedent has real estate in more than one State, a probate must be filed in each State, increasing costs considerably.
- Delays: Probate, by definition, is a proceeding governed by the Court and the family can be at the mercy of the Court’s schedule. Hearings, even for mundane matters, can turn into a rollercoaster of emotions for family and friends. The court governs the timeline, not the family, which can be another source of anxiety in an already difficult time.