Notice to Creditors

Minnesota Probate Law | Who does the personal representative have to give notice to?

While almost every part of Minnesota probate boils down to assets and how they’re managed, communication is perhaps the most essential skill for handling the present matters.

Not every relationship involved in the process may be two-dimensional. In fact, Minnesota probate law may help you realize how three-dimensional the situation is. You may find that you need to decide how much is sold in order for a family to keep the car, or it may mean navigating family relationships to settle problems that didn’t arise until now. You’ll probably find that you need to at least work with the court and beneficiaries, and there could be creditors and other parties you need to interact with as well.

Informal and Formal Notice and Publication in the Newspaper

Sometimes when someone is seeking to be the personal representative, they’re required to do so by informing interested parties and sending the notice to a general publication.   This is referred to as the “Notice to Creditors”.  This takes place, for example, when someone wants to become an Minnesota personal representative during informal probate.

Informal probate often involves the executor being held to slightly higher standards as the court may anticipate them to act honest without as much supervision. Sending these notices is generally a wise thing to do so that other parties are informed. It will also help prove that the executor did their part to locate potential beneficiaries.

Because the court may not be as involved in informal probate compared to how they might be during formal probate, the executor should assume that they need to be the person who holds themself accountable.

The court has gone ahead an enabled them to act on their own accord. Having a paper trail is a must. Time may not be on your side as you might only have one to two months to give notice of probate. Also, be sure that you check and see how long the court requires for the publication to be printed. Some areas require the notice is published for a certain amount of time.

Contacting Interested Parties (Heirs, Devisees, Beneficiaries, Creditors)

Anyone who you can imagine being an heir or having some kind of connection to the deceased should be contacted. Even if their name isn’t in the will or a trust, contact them to be sure. Anyone who would be invited to the funeral should be informed.

Creditors should be contacted eventually, but for the time being, focus on contacting family members, friends, employers, and anyone who might have owned assets with or rented property from the deceased.

Don’t assume that you should stick to the will as your only to-do list. It’s a great starting place, but ensure that you don’t stop there even if it lists their complete family genealogy, every friend they ever had, and all pieces of property they owned or rented.

Cases where the property will automatically transfer outside of probate may exist. That said, be aware that checking the paperwork might be what you need to confirm such assumptions. There are plenty of estate planning documents that may exist outside of the will.

You want to have evidence in case angry beneficiaries want to challenge your decisions. You may not need the information now, but be prepared to have it later. Besides, most parties may want to know if the property will be theirs and not have to wait for probate to end.

Discuss the Debt

Taxes and debt are what you should have next on your brain. Assume that you need to talk with every creditor and pay every bill. This part of MN probate could be considered more important than talking to all of the heirs, as this part of the probate may decide whether or not there’s anything to inherit. Creditors get the first slice of the pie, and they might get all of it.

Should you find that the estate’s worth doesn’t total to more than the amount which needs to be paid, you may need to start considering how to manage the situation. You may need to decide how much each debt collector gets paid. Don’t panic if possible. Try to treat this time as research and not the final project.

Eventually, you will need to issue a formal notice to any creditors and try to obtain the deceased’s credit report. To help ease your fears, there are laws which should help protect you from being harassed.

Moreover, being harassed by creditors is a perfectly good reason to seek out legal help. Figuring out the debts is one of the biggest reasons why you’re acting as the executor. That said, this part of the job might be among the most necessary. Don’t consider that you can promise anyone their inheritance until the creditors are satisfied.

Steps to Involve the Beneficiaries of the Estate

Beneficiaries may not only be entitled to parts of the estate, but they may also be entitled to know what’s going on. Hiding that information from them may only land you in metaphorical hot water.

They probably want to know what’s going on because they may want their fair share, and they could also be concerned with how the estate is being handled. An older sister may want to inherit the family home, but be concerned about her brother getting payment equal to the home’s worth. Perhaps they’re concerned with who might be handling their parent’s assets for the sake of their mother or father.

There are two kinds of documents beneficiaries should have the right to, namely estate inventories and accounting statements detailing what was paid to creditors. They have the legal right to know what kind of assets the deceased left behind as well as what kind of debts needed to be paid.

You can’t assume that simply paying off someone’s debt with cash will work out, as someone may want the cash rather than the physical assets and vice versa. You need to show that you did the math properly so that the estate was well managed.

Minnesota Probate Lawyers

Having said all that, you don’t need to take an online class on becoming an extrovert. Most of this, in fact, boils down to your responsibility rather than your ability to communicate. Assume that the courts will be lighter on individuals who put their best effort in to do the right thing rather than just trying to check off boxes.

Probate can involve time crunches, but there’s also making sure that everything gets done. You need to make sure that everyone who needs to be talk to gets informed of the situation.

Contact the Minnesota probate lawyers today for your free initial consultation at 612-424-0398.

Sources

https://www.dhs.mn.gov/main/