Arizona Estate Planning, Business Law, and Adoptions

The Probate Process in Arizona

Probate

After death, your loved ones can open probate to administer your estate. If you loved ones fail to open probate then a creditor can choose to open probate after a specific period of time. During the probate process whereby your debts are paid and your assets are distributed according to the terms of your will a personal representative will be appointed by the court to properly administer your estate. Your will should name the personal representative.

Typically, most estates are administered in an “informal” proceeding. “Formal” administration of an estate are available where there is dispute regarding the dispositive terms or validity of the will.

In any event, many documents must be filed with the court to ensure that all of the estate assets are accounted for and properly distributed and then accounted for once again.

Arizona law requires that a Notice to Creditors be presented to all known creditors and published in a newspaper of general circulation. Creditors must have four months to present a claim against the estate. Therefore, probate proceedings require at least four months before they can be closed. Sometimes, probate proceedings can take years to complete. The cost of conducting probate proceedings ranges based on several factors, which include but are not limited to the complexity of the probate matter, family feuds concerning the intent and language of a will, number of assets involved, etc.

Probate proceedings are filed with the Clerk of the Court, which are listed below. The law firm of Spencer Evans assists clients throughout the state of Arizona to properly probate their loved ones estates. If you would like legal assistance in completing a probate, please contact my office at (623) 505-0565.

                               

Apache County   Sue Hall   Clerk of the Apache County Superior Court   PO Box 365 St. Johns, AZ 85936   Telephone:  (928) 337-7550   Fax: (928) 337-2771	Cochise County   Denise I. Lundin   Clerk of the Cochise County Superior Court   P.O. Box CK   Bisbee, AZ 85603   Telephone: (520) 432-8570   Fax: (520) 432-4850
Coconino County   Deborah Young   Clerk of the Coconino County Superior Court   200 N. San Francisco (Court House)   Flagstaff AZ. 86001   Telephone: (928) 779-6535	Margaret Toot   Clerk of the Gila County Superior Court   Globe Courthouse   1400 E. Ash Street   Globe, AZ 85501   Telephone: (928) 425-3231
Graham County   Darlee Maylen   Clerk of the Graham County Superior Court   800 W. Main St.   Safford, AZ 85546   Telephone: (928) 428-3919	Greenlee County   Clerk   of the Greenlee County Superior Court   P.O. Box 908   Clifton, AZ 85533   Telephone: (928) 865-2072   Fax: (928) 865-4417
La Paz County   Sheri   Newman   Clerk of the La Paz County Superior Court   1316 Kofa Ave.   Parker, Arizona 85344   Telephone: (928) 669-6131	Maricopa County   Clerk of the Maricopa County Probate Court   125 W. Washington   Phoenix, AZ 85003-2243   Telephone: (602) 506-3668
Mohave County   Clerk of the Mohave County Superior Court   401 East Spring Street   P.O. Box 7000   Kingman Arizona 86402-7000   Telephone: (928) 753-0713   Fax: (928) 753-0781	Navajo County   Clerk of the   Navajo County Superior Court   100 East Carter Drive, South Highway 77   Holbrook, AZ 86025   Telephone: (928) 524-4000
Pima County   Patricia A. Noland   Clerk of the Pima County Superior Court   110 West Congress St.   Tucson, Arizona 85701-1317   Telephone: (520) 740-3200   Fax: (520) 798-3531	Pinal County   Kristi Youtsey Ruiz   Clerk of the Pinal County Superior Court   31 N. Pinal Street Bldg E.   Florence, AZ 85232   Telephone: (520) 866-6296   Fax: (520) 866-6252
Santa Cruz County   Clerk of the Santa Cruz County Superior Court   2150 North Congress Drive   Nogales, AZ 85621   Telephone: (520) 761-7800   Fax: (520) 761-7843	Yavapai County   Jeanne Hicks   Clerk of the Yavapai County Superior Court   120 S Cortez Room 207   Prescott, AZ 86301   Telephone: (928) 771-3312   Fax: (928) 771-3111
Yuma County   Clerk of the Yuma County Superior Court   198 S. Main Street   Yuma, AZ 85364   Telephone: (928) 329-2104   Fax: (928) 329-2001

SPENCER EVANS
ATTORNEY AT LAW, PLC
PLANNING FOR SUCCESSION SM
(623) 505-0565
se@spencerevans.com

Last Will & Testament

Wills

No one wants to think about death, especially the prospect of one’s own death being sooner than later. Yet, it is important to make sure that your loved ones are provided for and taken care of if anything happens to you. If you don’t have a will, now is the time to give it serious thought. If you have already executed a will and you want to make changes to it, now is also the time to do so.

If you fail to plan for the disposition of your assets, the State of Arizona has already decided how your assets will be distributed; however, the State’s plan of distribution is likely not the same as your plan. More importantly than asset distribution is determining who will be the guardian of your children. It is important to designate in your will who will be the guardian of your children so that your children will be provided for and taken care of. No one knows better than you do as a parent who will best raise your children in the event you die while your greatest treasures are still young children.

What is a Valid Will?

In Arizona, the following requirements must be met in order for a will to be properly executed:

1) Testator must be eighteen years of age;

2) The Will must be written with testamentary intent;

3) The Testator must sign the Will;

4) Two persons must witness the Testator’s signing (or Testator’s acknowledgement of a previous signature); and

5) The witnesses must sign the will within a reasonable time thereafter.

An uncontested will may be admitted to probate as long as it appears to have been validly executed. If the will is contested, the court will schedule a formal testacy proceeding.

If you will does not meet the requirements set forth above the court may determine that it was not validly executed and may distribute your assets as if you had not made a will at all. 

Completing a Will

It is unfortunate that a majority of people in the United States do not have a will. Perhaps, even more unfortunate are the numerous issues that arise to individuals who have already prepared their wills without the assistance of legal advise. Many issues arise when drafting a will and many unforeseen consequences are incurred by individuals who choose to draft their own wills without the assistance of an attorney. The legal issues that arise from drafting wills without the assistance of an attorney are only compounded when the testator creates subsequent wills, modifies a will, revokes a will, attempts to amend only certain portions of a will or attempts to revoke the will. Additional issues regarding ademption arise when a testator provides that a beneficiary is to receive a specific gift (e.g. “my 2002 Ford Mustang”), but later sales the Mustang before passing away. At times additional issues arise regarding the true intent of the testator after his or her death when a beneficiary predeceases the testator after the will was executed. For these and many other reasons, it is wise to utilize the assistance of a licensed Arizona attorney to prepare your estate plan. 

SPENCER EVANS
ATTORNEY AT LAW, PLC
PLANNING FOR SUCCESSION SM
(623) 505-0565
se@spencerevans.com