Probate in Illinois

The Illinois probate process is a court-supervised legal procedure that is sometimes required after someone dies. Its purpose is to make it clear who inherits the deceased person’s property and to make sure valid debts and taxes are paid. Probate is handled by the deceased person’s executor, who must:

• Prove in court that a deceased person’s will is valid;
• Identify and inventory the deceased person’s assets;
• Have those assets appraised;
• Pay debts and taxes, and;
• Distribute the remaining property as the will (or if there’s no will, state law) directs.

When the total value of the deceased person’s estate is less than $100,000 and doesn’t contain real estate, a formal probate court proceeding is not required. (755 Ill. Compiled Stat. 5/25-1) Instead, beneficiaries can use a simple affidavit, or sworn statement, to claim their inheritance.

If the estate is worth more than $100,000 and/or if it includes real estate, then probate is required. In Illinois, probate cases are handled by the Circuit Court in the county in which the deceased person was living. Some larger counties have a special probate division of the Circuit Court.

Probate is the responsibility of the person named in the deceased person’s will as the executor of the estate. If there’s no will, someone must step up and ask the court to be appointed as administrator of the estate, a job that is just the same as an executor. It’s the executor’s job to gather inventory, and safeguard estate assets. If necessary, the executor may need to sell some assets.

The executor is also in charge of using estate assets to pay valid claims, such as funeral expenses. The executor must:

• Publish notice of the probate case, to inform creditors, and;
• Directly notify known creditors.

Creditors then have six months to file claims against the estate.

The executor will file a final accounting before the estate closes that shows how estate assets were handled. It will list all the assets, any income that estate generated, amounts paid out for debts and expenses, and any distributions that have been made to beneficiaries. The accounting will also document how the executor intends to distribute the rest of the assets. Then, the estate is closed.