What is Utah Probate Court?

You may have heard people suggest that it’s a good idea to avoid Utah probate court. And it is. But many people don’t understand exactly why.

Probate court is the name of the specific court that oversees the way a deceased person’s property is distributed to others. It also covers crucial matters like who will care for any of the deceased’s minor children.

So, in the most basic sense, probate court makes sure that your things go to the right people once you die and that your minor children will be properly cared for.

That might make you wonder why there’s talk of avoiding it. It doesn’t sound like such a bad thing, right?

The Costs of Probate Court

Although probate court serves an important purpose in many cases, the process of going through probate can be expensive and time consuming for the friends and family you leave behind. Probate court handles cases responsibly, as you’d expect, but there’s no guarantee that they’ll decide to distribute your possessions, or provide for the care of your minor children, in the way that you would have.

The good news is that probate court is avoidable. If you’ve arranged a proper estate estate plan then you can avoid probate and ensure that your children and are cared for by the person you trust and your possessions are given to the correct people.

Cutler | Riley Law is one of Utah’s most trusted estate planning firms and we’d be happy to answer more of your questions and help you arrange the estate planning you need. We can help you outline all of your estate planning options based on your needs and advise on the best course of action.