Posts Tagged ‘Mississippi Probate Attorney’

Property Located in Mississippi Must be Probated in Mississippi

Tuesday, November 10th, 2009

If you are the executor of an estate which possesses property situated in Mississippi, you must probate that will in Mississippi.

Mississippi law is clear that property situated in Mississippi descends according to Mississippi law, regardless of where the decedent resided or was domiciled. This is true whether the property is real or personal, and whether the estate is testate or intestate.

See Mississippi Code Annotated, Section 91-1-1 (Rev. 2004); Estate of High v. Cobb et al. No. 2008-CA-00799-COA.

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Notice to Creditors

Tuesday, September 15th, 2009

One important function of probate is the Notice to Creditors. A Notice to Creditors performs the function implied by its title: It notifies creditors of the decedent that an estate has been opened in a given Chancery or Probate court and that all creditors have 90 days from the first publication of the Notice to Creditors in which to file any claim against the estate. Pursuant to Section 91-7-151 of the Mississippi Code Ann., any claim not registered within 90 days from first publication is barred, and no suit can be maintained as to that claim. However, existing liens on a property owned by the decedent can still be enforced even if the lien-creditor failed to present the claim. See Section 91-7-167 Mississippi Code Ann.

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What do Executors do?

Tuesday, August 25th, 2009

So you’re an executor. Now what?

Perhaps the most important part of any Will is the naming of the executor, also sometimes referred to as the executrix (female) or the personal representative. Executor may sound like a scary word, but there’s really nothing scary about it.

Mississippi Code Annotated Section 91-7-47 requires the executor to take possession of the decedent’s estate, and manage it “for the best interest of all concerned,” consistent with the Will and the law.

In general, an executor’s duties are as follows (be sure to consult a Mississippi probate attorney when administering an estate in Mississippi):

1. Locate the original Will.
2. Hire  an attorney to probate the Will.
3. The probate attorney opens the estate and the Court gives the executor Letters Testamentary.
4. Use the Letters Testamentary to locate the assets of the decedent. The Letters Testamentary is the document which shows holders of the decedent’s assets, such as banks, that you are the executor and have the authority from the Court to administer the decedent’s estate.
5. Obtain an inventory and appraisal of the estate if the Will did not waive these requirements. Many Wills do waive this requirement. Check with your probate attorney. Even when the requirement is waived it’s necessary to have a fairly good handle on the value of the estate.
6. Open an estate account. In order to do that the executor will need a Federal Tax ID number. These are easily obtained by your probate attorney or an accountant.
7. Notify creditors and pay any debts of the estate. Once known creditors are paid, the probate attorney notifies the Court through an affidavit. Then a Notice to Creditors is published in the local paper notifying unknown creditors that they ninety (90) days to file a claim or their claim with be time barred.
8. File tax returns and pay all outstanding taxes. Consult your probate attorney or tax advisor regarding paying any taxes owed by the decedent or his estate.
9. Distribute the assets of the estate to the beneficiaries and close the estate. Once the debts and taxes have been paid, the executor should distribute the assets of the estate to the beneficiaries as instructed by the Will. In some cases, a final accounting will be necessary. Upon distribution the probate attorney will seek to close the estate and release the executor from his or her duties.

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