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

If the person who died made and executed a valid will in Salem, New Hampshire, the process of estate administration typically follows the procedures and instructions laid out in the will.

Most frequently, a will names a person to serve as executor, whose job it is to ensure that the estate is properly administered.

The executor is typically whoever stands to obtain the most money or property if the will is given effect, since that is the person who likely has the most incentive to do their part in seeing that the probate process plays out to completion.

What if The Will Does Not Name an Executor?

If a will in Salem, New Hampshire does not name a person to serve as executor, or the decedent dies without having written a will, the court will appoint a person to act as estate administrator.

This is most frequently the person who would inherit most under the will, or under the intestacy scheme of New Hampshire. Intestacy is when a person dies without having made a will, or if a will turns out to be invalid. The intestacy laws of each state control how property is distributed in such a situation. In most states, it simply goes to the closest living relative.

When a will is silent as to who should be the executor, any person who has some direct interest in the outcome can ask to be named executor by the Salem, New Hampshire court.

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 protect the estate's interests as they would their own.

Can a Salem, New Hampshire Estate Administration Attorney Help?

If you have unexpectedly been appointed to be the executor of a relative's estate, and don't know how to handle this process, you should speak with a knowledgeable Salem, New Hampshire wills and trusts attorney.