Personal Representative

Maryland Personal Representative Lawyer

When you pass away in the state of Maryland, someone must be appointed to handle your affairs. This falls to the services of a personal representative. The personal representative might also be referred to as an executor in certain states but their role remains the same; to streamline the administration of your assets and to make sure that all claims associated with your estate are properly paid out before beneficiaries receive their assets.

What to Know About Being a Personal Representative in Maryland

Most people working as an executor have never done so before and are not familiar with the process and expectations. It is for this reason that many of them turn to a Maryland personal representative attorney to gain clarity over what is involved and also to legally protect themselves against claims that could be filed by disgruntled beneficiaries. A personal representative attorney in Maryland can play a couple of different roles in the case. This can even start as early as when a will is found that belonged to a deceased relative.

The personal representative lawyer in Maryland, for example, might gather the paperwork and tell you what is needed as the first few steps serving as a personal representative when going to court. This can ease the fears of a new personal representative who is unclear of their role and wants to avoid the possibility of early mistakes that could prove costly down the line. A personal representative attorney in Maryland can also be brought in later on in the case, such as after probate has already been opened but the personal representative is having difficulty locating assets or retitling them into the name of the estate.

Another occasion in which a personal representative lawyer can prove fruitful is when there is an existing conflict between the personal representative and the beneficiaries of the estate. Having someone who is knowledgeable about estate and probate law who can step in and stop this situation from escalating any further can make a big difference in managing the probate process overall.

You are not obligated to hire a probate support attorney, but it can be very valuable if the volume of assets inside the estate is very high or it appears very difficult to work with family member beneficiaries who are expecting updates on the case. In those circumstances, you might communicate with a personal representative lawyer as soon as possible and ask that this attorney be the primary contact in all of your communication with beneficiaries or even with creditors on the case.

Kinds of Issues That Show Up During Probate

There are a lot of questions that can come up during probate, such as the order in which claims must be paid to comply with the law. This is especially important when an executor is getting to the end of their process to verify that claims have been paid in the priority order named by the state so that they are not held personally liable for making payments to beneficiaries when existing creditor claims should have been dealt with first. These are just a sampling of the ways that a personal representative attorney can help you. Be sure to discuss your options with a lawyer.

Make sure that you complete each of the tasks required of you and approach this process with clarity and understanding. It’s much easier when there’s an attorney to help you with that.