Probate & Estate Administration

Our office is here to help you and your family with the details and demands of estate and trust administration. If you need help with the probate of an Oregon will, or if you have been named as a successor trustee under a living trust, contact us.

We know how to open an estate, assemble and inventory the assets, deal with the claims of creditors, and take care of all of the other duties of a personal representative. Our goal is to get the assets of the estate into the hands of heirs and beneficiaries as quickly as possible, consistent with the requirements of Oregon probate law.

Even in an uncomplicated estate, it can take several months to wind up the probate court proceedings.

In some cases, the personal representative of an estate might run into problems concerning the proper ownership of a particular asset. Confusion as to the status of joint checking accounts, gifts or other transfers prior to death, or the ambiguous terms of a will can require a lawyer’s attention to resolve disagreements and potential family discord. We can also help personal representatives from exposing themselves to trouble by overlooking essential legal requirements. Our experience with probate complications of all kinds can help you avoid liability while finding practical solutions to difficult problems.

For out-of-state personal representatives and trustees, we can usually help you discharge your responsibilities without the need for you to return to Oregon. In order to avoid this, many families use living trusts to keep assets out of probate and minimize delays. We can review your trust instruments to make sure that all assets have been properly transferred into trust, and advise the successor trustee about his or her postmortem accounting and reporting duties.

In some cases, the personal representative of an estate and the successor trustee of a living trust might run into problems concerning the proper ownership of a particular asset. Confusion as to the status of joint checking accounts, gifts or other transfers prior to death, or the ambiguous terms of a will can require a lawyer’s attention to resolve disagreements and potential family discord. We can also help estate and trust fiduciaries from exposing themselves to trouble by overlooking essential legal requirements. Our experience with probate complications of all kinds can help you avoid liability while finding practical solutions to difficult problems.