Probate/Trust Administration
Guidance Through Probate, When You Need It Most
Why It Matters
Probate Is Procedure With Real Consequences
Ohio’s probate code runs on deadlines, fiduciary duties, and required filings. Handled well, it’s a workable process. Handled poorly, it costs the estate and exposes the personal representative to liability.
Strict Deadlines, Real Consequences
Ohio probate runs on a calendar. Inventories are due within three months of appointment. Accounts within six. Miss them and the court intervenes — fiduciaries face removal, beneficiaries grow frustrated, and small problems compound quickly.
The Personal Representative Has Real Duties
The person appointed to administer the estate carries fiduciary obligations to the court, the creditors, and every beneficiary. Doing it right matters. So does having counsel who’s done it before and knows what the court actually expects.
Small Mistakes Get Expensive
Untransferred deeds, missed creditor notices, distributions made too early — small errors in probate compound into thousands of dollars and months of delay. Most of them are avoidable with the right help from the start.
Who We Help
More Families End Up Here Than Expect To
If you’ve been named in a will, lost a loved one, or are wondering whether probate even applies, you don’t have to figure it out alone.
Surviving
Spouses
The loss of a spouse triggers immediate questions about accounts, real estate, and benefits. We help you understand what passes automatically, what requires probate, and what timing matters most — with the patience the moment deserves.
Adult Children Handling a Parent's Estate
Adult children usually end up doing this work, often while sorting out a house, scattered accounts, and siblings with opinions. We take the court side — the filings, the deadlines, the accounting — so you can handle the family side.
Out-of-State
Heirs
Ohio property requires Ohio probate. Out-of-state personal representatives and heirs often don’t realize that until they try to sell a parent’s house. We represent you locally without you needing to travel for routine appearances.
Personal Representatives Named in a Will
Being named executor isn’t an honor as much as a job. We help you understand the role, file appointment paperwork, and avoid the personal liability that comes with the fiduciary duties no one warned you about.
How It Works
The Probate Process, Step by Step
From the first phone call to the closing of the estate — here’s what to expect.
Free Consultation
A full sixty minutes. We listen to what’s happened, review what the decedent left behind, and tell you what an administration would look like in your situation. No cost, no pressure.
Open the Estate
We prepare the application for appointment of fiduciary, file it with Stark County Probate Court, and obtain Letters of Authority so you can legally act for the estate.
Inventory, Notice & Claims
We catalog and value the assets, file the inventory, give notice to heirs and creditors, and handle valid claims against the estate during the six-month claims period.
Distribution & Close
We prepare and file the final account, secure court approval, distribute remaining assets to beneficiaries, transfer real estate, and close the estate with the court.
Trust Administration
A Trust Skips the Court, Not the Work
If there’s a revocable trust, the successor trustee takes over instead of a probate court. The obligations don’t disappear — they just move.
What a Successor Trustee Does
Notify the beneficiaries, identify and value what the trust holds, settle the final debts and taxes, and distribute according to the trust’s terms. It is fiduciary work, held to much the same standard a probate court would apply.
A Trust Rarely Avoids Probate Entirely
Anything the person owned outside the trust still needs probate — an account never retitled, a vehicle, a parcel nobody remembered. Most families with a trust still need at least a small filing with the court.
Doing Both at Once Is Normal
Administering a trust and opening a probate estate side by side is the common case, not the exception. We handle both, so you aren’t coordinating two sets of advisers through the same months.
Frequently Asked Questions
Probate Questions, Answered
How long does probate take in Ohio?
A straightforward estate typically takes six to nine months. The floor is set by the roughly six-month window Ohio gives creditors to bring claims, which generally can’t be shortened even when everyone knows there are no debts. Smaller estates that qualify for a simplified release can close much faster.
I’ve been named executor. What am I responsible for?
Gathering and safeguarding the estate’s assets, notifying heirs and creditors, filing an inventory with the court, paying valid debts and taxes, distributing what remains, and filing a final accounting. You’re a fiduciary, which means keeping estate money separate from your own and keeping records clean enough to survive the court’s review at the end.
Do I need a lawyer to probate an estate?
Not always. Ohio’s simplified procedures for smaller estates are designed to be manageable, and some families handle those on their own. Full administration is different — there are filings on deadlines, a formal accounting the court reviews, and personal liability attached to getting it wrong.
What does probate cost, and who pays for it?
The estate pays. Court costs, appraisals, and professional fees come out of estate assets before anything is distributed — not out of the executor’s own pocket. We’ll walk through what your matter is likely to involve at the first conversation.
What if I live out of state?
That’s common, and it doesn’t prevent you from serving. Ohio property requires Ohio probate regardless of where you live, and we represent you locally so you aren’t traveling for routine appearances.
Get Started
We'll Help You Take the Next Step
If you’ve lost someone and aren’t sure what comes next, that’s the right time to call. The first conversation is free, confidential, runs a full sixty minutes, and carries no obligation. We’ll listen, explain what probate would involve in your situation, and help you decide what to do.
Send Us a Message
Tell us a bit about your situation and we’ll reach out to schedule your consultation.
Submitting this form does not create an attorney-client relationship. Please do not include confidential information until that relationship has been established.
