Connecticut probate attorneys know that the probate process is often a complicated and difficult process for family members to go through after their loved one has passed away. The probate process can take a long time, cost a lot of money, and leave families struggling to understand legal concepts that they do not fully grasp. 
You don’t want the probate process to be any more difficult than it needs to be, which means you should make sure you have a legal advocate helping you to fulfill your role within this process. Nirenstein, Horowitz & Associates represents executors of an estate, heirs or beneficiaries, those who wish to contest a will and anyone else who has an interest in the probate process.
Our legal team can help you to try to make sure the process goes quickly and smoothly so the affairs of the estate can be wound up in a timely manner and property can pass to new owners. We can also assist you when problems do arise. Problems are, unfortunately, far too common during probate and can affect how long probate takes as well as how much of an inheritance is available to heirs or beneficiaries. These are a few of the common problems that could potentially arise during probate that could affect your inheritance and your efforts to ensure the wishes of the deceased are respected.
Issues with the Executor
The executor of an estate has a fiduciary duty, which is the highest legal duty that one can owe. In some cases, heirs or beneficiaries – or the court – may feel that an executor of an estate is not living up to his duty. When this happens, the executor could be removed. In some cases, those who stand to inherit could also pursue a claim against the executor of an estate for breach of fiduciary duty if they believe that the executor has caused financial loss by acting negligently or acting to enrich himself at the expense of the estate.
Assets You Cannot Find
The executor of an estate must make sure that a careful accounting of estate assets is undertaken and the executor of an estate must manage assets that were owned by the deceased and that will now transfer through the probate process. In some cases, finding all of the assets that the deceased left behind can be very complicated. In fact, sometimes people don’t know where the deceased person’s bank accounts were, where he owned real estate and whether he owned real estate, or other fundamental key aspects of the deceased person’s financial situation.
Medicaid Estate Recovery Efforts
One big problem that is common during estates is when the state essentially acts as a creditor and tries to recoup money spent on Medicaid. Medicaid estate recovery rules allow the state to try to recoup money spent if it provided payments for nursing home bills for seniors and if Medicaid covered other care for someone who was older. Medicaid could try to collect against many or all of the assets, which could sometimes mean a family home ends up needing to be sold. There could be ways to protect the estate assets despite Medicaid estate recovery efforts and Connecticut probate attorneys can help you to find ways to try to keep property and funds left by the deceased from being lost.
A Will Contest
There are many circumstances under which someone will decide to contest a will because they don’t believe it is a true reflection of the wishes of the deceased. The executor of an estate and heirs or beneficiaries will generally defend the will and argue why it should be probated. A will contest can take a long time and can result in family fighting and acrimony that breaks down family bonds. However, if the last will and testament that is being presented to be probated is not actually an accurate reflection of what the deceased would have wanted, contesting the will is necessary to protect the interests of the person who passed away.
Getting Help from Connecticut Probate Attorneys
Nirenstein, Horowitz & Associates can help you to try to reduce the chances of problems developing during the probate process. If an issue does arise, our legal team can help you to resolve it in as quick and effective a manner as possible, with the goal of protecting the assets of the deceased and ensuring that the deceased can leave his desired legacy. To find out more about how our Connecticut probate attorneys can help you, join us for a free seminar. You can also give us a call at 860-548-1000 or contact us online today.
Mr. Nirenstein is licensed to practice before the courts of the State of Connecticut and the United States District Court. He is a member of the Connecticut and Hartford County Bar Associations, and the Estate and Probate, Elder Law, Business Law and Real Estate Sections of the Connecticut Bar Association.
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