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When a
person dies an estate is created. An estate includes
property which the decedent owned, either real or personal.
The law requires that someone must administer the estate.
Administration is the process of paying the decedent's
outstanding debts and distributing the remaining property to
his or her heirs or beneficiaries. An estate should be
administered in the county in which the person that died
resided in. If an individual leaves no Last Will and
Testament the person in charge of the administration is
called an administrator if they are male, if the person in
charge is female they are called an administratrix. When
there is no Last Will and Testament, the decedent is said to
have died intestate, and his or her property passes by
statues called Laws of Intestacy. If an individual does
leave a Last Will and Testament, the person in charge is
called an executor if they are male. If the person in
charge is female, they are called executrix. Because the
person in charge holds a position of trust, they are also
referred to as fiduciary.
A Quick Overview of the
Probate Process
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The
personal representative needs to bring the original Last
Will and Testament, death certificate, if available,
social security number and a list of the names and
addresses of any beneficiaries or heirs of the estate to
the County Clerk's Office.
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You do
not need an appointment; our office is open from 8:30
AM till 4:30 PM
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The
Clerk's Office will keep and record the original Last
Will and Testament. We will gladly make copies
available.
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If
there is no Last Will and Testament, the administrator
should be prepared to post a bond. The Monroe County
Clerk's Office uses Monroe Insurance in Union as a
bonding agent. Any agent who is licensed in the State
of WV will be accepted.
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The
initial visit to our office should take about 30
minutes.
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The
amount of bond is determined by the total of probate
assets of the estate.
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Once
the personal representative is qualified, they are then
required to complete an "Estate Appraisement and
Non-probate Inventory", which will be supplied to you by
our office. You will have 90 days to complete this
inventory.
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Once
the "Estate Appraisement and Non-probate Inventory" is
returned to the Clerk's Office, a "Notice to Creditors"
is placed in the local newspaper. This notice is
required to be published for two consecutive weeks.
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If an
estate exceeds $100,000.00 in probate assets, the estate
is referred to a Fiduciary Commissioner. The Fiduciary
Commissioner will have the "Notice to Creditors"
published and later in the process, prepare the final
settlement for the estate. Any creditor has 90 days
from the first publication of the notice to file a claim
against the estate.
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Once
the 90 day period has elapsed for filing a claim, the
administrator or executor may file a final accounting of
the estate. This final accounting will reflect the
assets and expenditures of the estate. The final
settlement is then presented to the County Commission
for approval.
Probate Fees
To
qualify as the personal representative when there is no Last
Will and Testament:
$12.00
To
qualify as the personal representative when there is a Last
Will and Testament, if the Last Will and Testament is four
pages or less:
$18.00
(Add $1.00 for each additional page of the Will.)
Fee to
record "Estate Appraisement and Non-Probate Inventory":
$26.00
If estate
is referred to a Fiduciary Commissioner the fee is:
$16.00
Fee to
record "Final Settlement" of estate:
$19.00
Please
contact our Probate Office at (304) 772-3096 with any
questions. |
