Our office is located in Cincinnati, so we can be easily reached by people that live in Hamilton, Ohio. It is a city with a rich history, and in fact, there are three National Historic Districts in town. Hamilton is also well known as a center of the arts, with a particular emphasis on sculpture. We have assisted many clients from this fine city, and we look forward to making new friends in the future.
The Probate Process
If you use a last will to direct the transfer of your assets after you are gone, it will be admitted to probate. The executor that you name in the document would take care of the hands-on estate administration tasks, and the process would be supervised by the court.
Creditors would be given six months to come forward seeking satisfaction, and final expenses would be paid. Ultimately, the court would close the estate, and the executor would distribute assets to the heirs in accordance with your wishes.
Probate will also enter the picture when someone dies intestate. This is the condition of passing away without any estate planning documents at all. In addition to estate matters, the probate court is responsible for guardianship and conservatorship proceedings. A guardian would be responsible for a minor, and a conservator would act on behalf of an adult that is incapacitated.
Butler County Probate Court
Probate courts serve entire counties. Since Hamilton is in Butler County, this is the probate court that you would interact with if you are a local resident. The offices are in the Butler County Court House, which is located at 101 High Street in Hamilton. Their office hours are 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, but you have to arrive by 3:30. The court can be reached by phone at 513-887-3294. This is a link to the website: Butler County Probate Court.
Ohio Revised Code
If you want to do some deep diving into the probate laws of the state of Ohio, there is a resource that you can tap into if you are intellectually intrepid. Admittedly, there is quite a bit of “legalese” to navigate, but the text of the Ohio Revised Code is available online. You can get a complete understanding of the probate process in Ohio if you digest this information.
Probate Checklist
There are numerous different steps that must be taken by the administrator when an estate is going through probate. The typical layperson that has no experience acting as an executor will certainly have a learning curve. We go the extra mile to provide assistance in any way that we can, and with this in mind, we have created a probate checklist that can help you understand the process.
Probate Seminars
In addition to the written material that you can access on this website, we provide additional learning opportunities. Our estate planning attorneys hold seminars on an ongoing basis, and during the sessions, they explain the probate process. You can obtain a great deal of valuable information if you attend one of our seminars. There is no admission charge, and you can get all the details if you click the following link: Zimmer Law Estate Planning Seminars.
Hamilton, Ohio Probate Attorney
All of the resources that we have shared here are useful, but the most effective resource that you can have by your side during the probate process is a licensed attorney. We have a great deal of experience dealing with the Butler County Probate Court. Our attorneys would be more than glad to guide you through the process if you would like some qualified legal assistance.
You can rest assured that you will feel entirely comfortable working with us from the first point of contact onward. We know that our clients are going through difficult times after the loss of a loved one, so we endeavor make things easy from a procedural perspective. If you would like to schedule a consultation, you can send us a message to request an appointment or give us a call at 513.721.1513.