For the unprepared, you may feel surprised when you learn that there are required reports in Lombard estate administration. Not having the proper documents ready could even bar you from proceeding with administrative duties. In the worst of instances, this could lead to legal troubles. Do not let this happen to you. Instead, contact an attorney who could help you through the administrative process.
A personal representative needs to produce various required reports when administering an estate in Lombard. Essentially, it would be bookending the administration of the estate. There is a required petition, which gives all of the courts and all interested persons an idea of what type of assets are in the estate and who the interested persons are. At the very end, there is a final report, which is a formal report in Lombard that puts all the beneficiaries and all the interested persons on notice that all the necessary steps of administration have been completed, such as all claims have been paid, all real estate has been sold, and all property has been distributed and to whom it is entitled. Those two main reports required to administer an estate in Lombard.
These reports could be accessed and prepared by counsel and by an attorney. Although the reports seem simple to fill out, they could be accessed online. DuPage County Clerk of the Circuit Court has an online database of probate forms that includes the initial petition and the final report. However, it is important to have a lawyer prepare those reports properly since they could be essential to successfully completing administrative tasks. For example, the final report is signed by the administrator and by the representative, and it attests to the fact that all the different duties have been carried out. It could be helpful to make sure that a lawyer has reviewed that form and reviewed whether or not those duties have been carried out.
An inventory is a description of every asset that belongs to an estate. Essentially, it is a description of every asset that the decedent held in their individual name at the time of their death.
These are required in the administration of all Lombard estates. The difference is in a supervised estate that inventory must be filed with the court, and in an unsupervised estate the inventory should just be distributed to all the beneficiaries.
The inventory should be distributed to and received by all interested persons. The exception is heirs, but not legatees under a will that have been admitted to probate. A creditor could request a copy of an inventory. All of the will’s beneficiaries would receive a copy of the inventory. In the situation of an intestate estate, all the heirs would receive a copy of the inventory, as well.
The purpose of the inventory is to advise all the interested persons what the assets of the estate are. It also serves as a starting point for the accounting of the representative’s administration. When a law firm prepares a final account for a representative, they start with the inventory and go from there to show exactly what happened with every asset that was in the inventory.
It serves as, essentially, a starting point to complete that process. It also puts all the beneficiaries on notice that this is what they are looking at as far as the overall value of an estate. The more complex the assets are on an inventory, then the beneficiaries are put on notice that estate administration might last longer than they would like.
Certain actions could not be taken until after an inventory has been filed. In a supervised estate, no disbursements could be made until after an inventory has been filed and a petition for distribution has also been approved by the court. A court would never approve a petition for distributions until it has seen an inventory because it is impossible for the court to know whether or not a certain distribution or certain expenditure is reasonable unless they have an idea of what is in the estate.
The inventory requirement changes depending on whether the estate is supervised or unsupervised. In an unsupervised estate, the inventory need not be filed with the court, while in a supervised estate, there is a date given whereby the inventory must be filed. If the representative does not file the inventory by that date given, the court has the discretion to remove the representative from power.
The role of an appraiser in this process is to establish a value for assets in the estate, particularly real property. Occasionally, there may be valuable personal property, such as jewelry or antique furniture. An appraiser is important because he or she essentially is a third-party opining on the value of various estate items and could provide an independent source of information as to that value. Especially in the event that these items are going to be sold, it is imperative that an appraiser be obtained to support the individual purchase price. Disputes can arise as to the value of various types of property, so lawyers would never advise a client to simply guess as to the value of a valuable diamond necklace or 12-unit apartment building, for instance. It is important to obtain independent appraisals for all these items.
When administering an estate, it is important that administrators have everything they need to complete the task at hand. Not having the knowledge or the required documents could lead to an unfulfillment of a decedent’s wishes. There are required reports in Lombard estate administration, and an attorney could help gather the necessary documents on your behalf. Doing so could allow you to focus on what matters: respecting a late loved one’s desires. Reach out to an attorney today.
