Cumming, Georgia Estate Planning and Probate Attorneys
If one of your heirs is a minor or a person of diminished mental capacities or for any other reason requires another person to make his or her financial decisions, you may want to consider a trust. A trust is a relationship that you establish, with the help of your lawyer, in which one or more persons control the property—in this case the assets that you left for your heir(s)—of another for his or her benefit. Trusts are often used when an heir hasn’t reached adulthood, but could also be used to benefit the ward in a guardianship arrangement.
The following is a list of Georgia legal terms that are useful when researching Atlanta area attorneys to assist with a will or trust:
Administrator
The person who administers a decedent’s estate when there is no will.
Administrator With Will Annexed
The person, other than an Executor, who administers a decedent’s estate when there is a Will (the Will fails to name an Executor or the named Executor cannot or will not serve).
Decedent
The deceased person.
Executor
The person who administers a decedent’s estate when there is a Will.
Heirs
Those persons who would inherit the estate of a decedent if there were no Will under the rules of descent and distribution. “Heir” does not mean the same thing as “beneficiary”, although an heir may also be a beneficiary.
Intestate
Without a Will.
Letters Testamentary/Letters of Administration
The official document issued by the Probate Court evidencing the authority of an executor or an administrator.
Personal Representative
Any executor, administrator, guardian or trustee, but not a temporary administrator.
Probate
The court procedure by which a Will is proved to be the valid last Will of a decedent; also used generically to refer to the legal process of administering a decedent’s estate.
Probate Court
The Court having jurisdiction over proceedings to administer the estate of a decedent; also has other jurisdiction.
Proceeding Pro Se
Representing yourself in court without an attorney
Testator
A person who has made a Will.
Will
A document, signed with the formalities required by Georgia law, by which a person makes disposition of his property, to take effect after his death.
[Source: http://www.gaprobate.org/loved_one.php]
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If you are seeking legal advice about a will or trust and you live in the greater
Atlanta area, call our Georgia probate and estate planning lawyers today.
We will evaluate your case and take you through the process step by step.
Please contact us at (770) 781-4100
access our simple contact form here.