When a person dies, a process identified as "estate administration" must be carried out. This refers to all the processes which must be followed in distributing a person's estate to their heirs or devisees.

If the decedent (the person who died) left a will, the process of estate administration in Valley Park Missouri will typically be carried out according to the instructions in the will.

Wills normally name an executor. The executor's role revolves around guaranteeing that the instructions in the will are implemented.

The executor is frequently the person who will get the most money or property out of the will if it is given effect, because this is the person who will have the greatest incentive to see that the probate process goes as rapidly as possible.

What if The Will Does Not Name an Executor?

If a will in Valley Park, Missouri does not name a person to serve as executor, or the decedent dies without having written a will, the court will assign a person to act as estate administrator.

Typically, the person chosen to be executor is the one who would benefit most under the will, or under Missouri's intestacy laws. "Intestacy" refers to a situation in which a person dies without a will, or "dies intestate." Every state has laws to address this situation, and there isn't a lot of variation from state to state. Typically, the decedent's property will go to his or her closest relative, and if absolutely no living relatives can be found, it will go to the state.

If the will doesn't name anyone as executor, or the individual who was named as executor is no longer living or cannot be found, anyone who has a direct interest in the will in Valley Park, Missouri can apply to the court to be the executor.

When the executor is chosen, they serve as a sort of incarnation of the decedent's estate - the estate's legal interests become the executor's interests, and the executor is expected to safeguard the estate's interests as they would their own.

Can a Valley Park, Missouri Estate Administration Attorney Help?

Some people are surprised when they find out they've been named the executor of a relative's estate. The responsibilities can seem daunting, but with the help of a reliable Valley Park, Missouri attorney, the process almost always goes pretty smoothly.