Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Probate

My parents signed a living trust but they did not re-title the family home in the trust name before they died. Will probate be required?

In many instances, no. A court can make an order finding that the home is in fact an asset of the trust if you can show that was your parents’ intent. That order will allow you as the Successor Trustee to sell or distribute the home as though it had been titled in the trust name. The petition requesting such an order is usually referred to as a Heggstad petition.

“It is the trade of lawyers to question everything, yield nothing, and to talk by the hour.”

- Author: Thomas Jefferson