Probate
Veteran Michigan Probate Attorney
Not sure where to start? Call Jon Frank
Probate matters are sensitive matters. You need experienced, affordable probate help.
Are you responsible for the medical care for someone like this, but the doctors/hospital will not disclose any information, due to confidentiality rules?
Do you or someone in your life want to make your wishes known, as far as a temporary medical condition, or “end of life care”?
Is there someone in your life who is vulnerable financially, due to advancing age, dementia, or mental illness? Has a young person, a minor in your life, come into money, due to a lawsuit or personal injury settlement?
Maybe you are fortunate enough to be able to spend significant vacation time away from your home (especially during Michigan’s cold winters!), and need to have someone represent you – temporarily – while you are away. These are some of life’s most sensitive issues. These are “Probate” issues.
Generally speaking, there are four different types of Michigan Courts. There are Circuit and District Courts, which hear the same types of cases; however, Circuit Courts generally hear higher value civil cases, and more severe criminal cases, while District Courts typically hear cases of lesser value and severity. You may have also heard of Small Claims Courts, which hear civil cases, with less than $6,500.00 at stake.
Probate Courts hear cases involving Decedents’ Estates, Guardianships, Conservatorships, mental health commitment hearings, and disputes regarding the interpretation of trust and power of attorney documents. Sometimes, these issues force Probate Court jurisdiction.
- If a person dies with a will, or without, there will be a probate case, with the delays and expense that entails — UNLESS STEPS ARE TAKEN IN ADVANCE (such as the setup of a well-drafted trust, and the proper set up of property ownership documents, bank/financial institution accounts, etc).
- When someone needs personal and financial help, because they can no longer handle these matters, Probate Courts will intervene — UNLESS STEPS ARE TAKEN IN ADVANCE (such as the setup of well-drafted “financial” and “medical/health care” powers of attorney.
- Probate Court intervention can be expensive and unnecessary. However, Probate Court can also be an effective and positive means of avoiding/surmounting family disputes, and to bring finality to arguments that seemingly have no end.
- When significant money is payable to a minor, or to a legally disabled adult, Probate Court intervention may well be mandatory, and so too, may be the appointment of a “Guardian Ad Litem”, who is more of an Court-appointed investigative attorney, than he/she is a “guardian”.
- You need to know how to use these Probate devices, when to use them, and when to not use them. Probate Court involvement also brings with it a series of procedures that even many experienced attorneys do not understand.
- You need the experience of a Michigan attorney, who knows how and when to avoid Probate Courts, when to use them, and how to use Probate Court procedures to your advantage. Give Jon Frank a call/text today, 877-FRANK-LAW (372-6552).
Frequently Asked Questions. Honest Answers.
This is an anxious time for you, or you would not be calling a lawyer. You are calling a lawyer, only because you have to. Therefore, you need to be able to figure out if the lawyer knows what they are doing, and if so, whether they can help you.
You are going to have to rely on this lawyer, so yes, you will need to develop some trust, and hopefully, some level of comfort, talking with this lawyer. Thus, the lawyer is going to ask you about the facts of your case, and you should be ready to answer his/her questions, even though they seem intrusive, or even irrelevant.
You also want to know about price and terms (is it hourly? How much? How much down, initially? Contingent fee, etc). However, you also want to know if you can work with this lawyer. In short, you are “feeling out” the situation, and indeed, the lawyer, to see if he/she is the one to hire.
Frank Law Probate is your source for accurate legal information and representation regarding Probate Court Matters, Real Estate Trusts to Avoid Probate, Medical & Financial Powers of Attorney, & Guardian Ad Litem Services (For Attorneys).
Most times, it is best for both lawyer and client, to hire locally. Therefore, for most probate matters, I usually work within a 100-mile radius of my home in (beautiful) Richmond MI. That usually means Macomb County, St. Clair County, Wayne County, Oakland County, Lapeer County, Tuscola County, Livingston County, Genesee County & Washtenaw County. However, sometimes, the client specifically does not want to hire locally; in other matters, the cases involve significant or unusual issues. In the right cases, I make exceptions.
- These are general comments, not just on the area of law on this web page. These are GENERAL COMMENTS, applicable to many different areas; not just accident matters. This WILL NOT WORK in many instances, and candidly, you will do better by hiring a lawyer, in most instances. In the course of my work, I frequently get inquiries from people in a variety of subjects. While the subjects and circumstances vary, there are some common threads:
- The people calling me think they can resolve their problems by means of direct face-to-face communication, or by telephone; The people calling me think they must hire a lawyer; they might, in might be easier for them to do so, but it is not always necessary; and
- Professionally drafted business-oriented correspondence, or email, could make unnecessary the delay and expense of hiring a lawyer, and “running off to court”. The most common scenario is a disagreement between the caller, and whomever it is they are dealing with. As I am writing this article, I just got off the phone with someone with a relatively small personal injury claim, one which did not warrant them hiring me, and one which I could not justify, from a business perspective. Frequently, the issue is a business transaction, or an insurance claim. It could be anything.
