Does a will always have to go to probate?

When you think about probate, you probably automatically think about a will. You may have been led to believe that all wills have to go through probate after a person dies. This is not always true. It really is dependent on each situation. Your will may never have to go through probate in New York courts, which could make things much easier on your loved ones since probate can be long and tedious.

According to The Balance, if you have set your will up so that property passes onto another person automatically upon your death, such as happens with joint ownership, then, your will may not need to go through probate . You can also set up automatic transfers that do not require any court intervention through trusts and by using beneficiaries on accounts or other monetary assets. 

In addition, if your estate is rather small, meaning you do not have a lot of valuable things to leave behind and the monetary value of your estate is small, you also may be able to avoid your will going to probate. This is especially true if you have a spouse because in most cases, everything you own will automatically go to your spouse under the law. 

Do note that it is important to ensure your will is legal. If it has anything in it that might be controversial or may be against the law, then it will need to go to probate. This information is intended to be educational only and is not to be used as legal advice.