At Kizer, Gammeltoft & Brown, P.C. we help guide families through life’s difficult transitions with expert and compassionate advice. In Tennessee, there are at least four different types of probate. Sometimes a probate isn’t even necessary. We can help you choose the right proceeding for your family’s circumstances.

When our attorneys help settle estates and trusts, we do so with great care and a high degree of personal sensitivity. We work closely with the family to ensure that all necessary and appropriate steps are taken to provide a smooth and orderly administration of each estate or trust. Those steps might include probate of the will, valuation of estate or trust assets, payment of debts and expenses, preparation of a federal estate tax return, funding trusts and transfer of assets to the beneficiaries.

Our team includes experienced paralegals, associate attorneys and the firm’s partners, enabling us to ensure that all estates, ranging from simple to complex, are administered efficiently and cost effectively.

Representation of Executors, Personal Representatives and Trustees

Our attorneys routinely advise executors, personal representatives and trustees (sometimes called fiduciaries) on their legal obligations and how to properly carry out their responsibilities in these roles. Will and trust documents, as well as Tennessee law, impose significant duties on fiduciaries. Often the fiduciary is a friend or family member who has no prior experience serving in such a role. As a boutique firm specializing in this area, we have vast experience in interpreting the relevant laws and legal documents and in educating personal representatives, executors and trustees on how to properly do the job that they have been entrusted to perform. We can provide varying degrees of assistance depending on what each fiduciary prefers and/or requires.

Our experienced staff, including specially trained paralegals, can assist in carrying out many of the daily activities associated with estate and trust administration. Whether it involves a routine administration, addressing complex tax or other issues, interpreting or fixing an ambiguous or defective will or trust or helping families work through disagreements, our experienced team can address any issue presented in the administration of a trust or estate.

Representation of Surviving Spouses

The modern family has become complex and often a person’s Will or trust agreement has not kept up. The rights of a surviving spouse may not be limited to what is contained within “the four corners” of the decedent’s Will and/or trust agreement. Our attorneys can advise surviving spouses on how to obtain and exercise all of his or her rights under Tennessee law.

Representation of Estate and Trust Beneficiaries

We represent estate and trust beneficiaries who have concerns about whether the estate or trust is being handled correctly.

Representation of Estate Creditors

If you are owed money by someone who has died, Tennessee has very strict rules and deadlines for filing a claim against their estate. Our attorneys routinely assist clients with filing claims against estates.