This page is to educate consumers about the probate process in Louisiana and its costs, and the merits of “probate avoidance.” In general, what is Louisiana Probate? Probate is the process whereby the deceased person’s representative asks the Court to formally open a Succession under the name of the deceased person, formally appoint the representative (known as an “Administrator” or “Executor”), and then place ownership of the deceased person’s property into the names of the person or persons ... [Continue Reading]

I often have clients come into my office asking that a succession be done for the estate of the loved one.  But in many cases a simpler and significantly less expensive procedure is available. In 2016, a mom and son (let’s call them Bill and Jill) asked me to draft the succession over the estate of “Jack”, their husband and father.  Jack and Jill only had a house, a bank account, and a car.  I informed them that I could easily prepare an Affidavit of Small Succession for only $750.  This ... [Continue Reading]

“Probate avoidance” is a topic that is often discussed in terms of extremes. At one extreme there are trust mills that peddle an exaggerated concern over “probate avoidance” in order to sell the next living trust (which should avoid probate).  Often, these trust mills are financial advisors who are not licensed to practice law, and would never be able to represent a client in a probate proceeding.  Therefore, they naturally steer a client in the direction of “probate avoidance”. At the ... [Continue Reading]