Whether a person owns real property or personal property in Oklahoma, upon that person’s death their Estate most likely needs to go through a court process called probate. This process usually takes place in the District Court in the county in the which the person resided or owned real property. There are many reasons for probating a person’s estate, including determination of heirs of the deceased as well as proper distribution of assets (for more information about asset distribution, see this article.
There are three main routes to choose from for the probate of your loved one’s Estate in Oklahoma, Traditional Probate, Ancillary Probate and Summary Administration. Some great information about the Probate process can be found on the Oklahoma Bar Association’s website.
Ancillary Probate is available if a person dies in another state and their Estate is probated in their “home” state, but the Decedent owned real property (which includes mineral rights) in Oklahoma.
Summary Administration of an estate can be much quicker and cost-efficient than a typical probate (often it only takes 45 days). Summary Administration is available if any of the following criteria are true about your loved one:
- resided in a state other than Oklahoma,
- had an Estate valued at less than $200,000.00, or
- have been deceased for more than 5 years.
Traditional Probate is needed if the criteria for an Ancillary Probate or Summary Administration are not available or if your attorney determines that other factors favor this process over the other options.
At our firm, we do our best to ensure an efficient and cost effective probate process for our clients. If you are in need of a probate for a loved one’s Estate, or are curious if probate is necessary, call our law firm, Hartsfield & Egbert, at (405) 285-6858, or visit our website and ask a question in the comment box.