Skip to Content

We are a Veteran Owned Business, providing 20% discounts for Veterans, First Responders, Elementary and High School teachers. Please contact us to set up a phone or Zoom meeting. Taking care of you and your family, It's What We Do!

Creditor Claims Against the Estate

Most people die with some debt. While an Executor has an obligation to address properly filed creditor claims, the Creditor must act sooner rather than later. A delay might mean the beneficiaries have already spent the estate’s funds leaving your claim essentially worthless. The below article describes creditor options to make claims against an estate.

Creditor Claims: What Does This Mean for a Beneficiary to an Estate?

A creditor must file a claim against an estate within a specified period, or the claim is forever barred. Therefore, if a decedent owes you money, you must pursue that claim. Payment of debts is made before payment of inheritances, reducing the estate’s total value.

Time Frames for Creditors to Make a Claim Against an Estate.

Each state limits the time for creditor claims. For example, Pennsylvania law provides that creditors have one year after the date of death to make a proper claim against the estate. A time limit exists so an executor can eventually distribute inheritances, free from the potential of later claims by unknown creditors

The Duty of the Personal Representative to Notify Creditors.

The Executor or Personal Representative is responsible for addressing properly filed creditor claims. Each state has rules covering what steps must be taken. If followed, the Executor is released from liability. If the Executor fails to follow proper steps, the creditor might have a claim against the Executor’s assets.

Advice for the Fiduciary

The most experienced professional fiduciaries hire experienced Estate Planning Attorneys to advise them. Hiring an advisor is excellent advice because as a fiduciary, you have the legal right to retain an experienced Estate Planning Lawyer to assist and advise you. There is no personal cost to you. The estate or trust pays the fee because obtaining advice when the chance for personal liability exists is a reasonable expense. Going without sound advice provided at no personal cost is foolish.

Fiduciaries should not use estate or trust assets for personal gain. Your decisions need be free of conflict and self-dealing. Sometimes the lines of what is your personal gain and what is best for the beneficiary are gray. When the lines are unclear, seek the advice of a seasoned Estate Planning Lawyer. Your lawyer can be a sounding board (at no cost to you) to help ensure your actions do not create personal liability.

We Can Help

If you have any questions about creditor’s claims or any other estate law topics, please contact us to schedule a free consultation.

Reasonable Prices | Years of Experience | We Stand With You and We Fight For You.

For more than two decades Klenk Law has focused only on Estate Law. We’ve seen it all, and this experience allows us to explain complex estate law and creditor’s claims against the estate clearly and concisely. If you are an Executor or Personal Representative our experienced Estate Attorneys will make it easy for you to understand creditors claims and provide advice so you can make the best decisions.

What Our clients are saying

Klenk Law Logo
Stars

Joe Peters

Always professional and very responsive. Everyone on the staff that I have worked with. I look forward to continuing our relationship.

Klenk Law Logo
Stars

Nafeesha. B

When it came down to picking the right attorney to handle my affairs, I knew right away it was this firm. From speaking to their secretary to speaking to Peter I knew I was making the right decision. After only a few mins Peter knew right away what I was looking for and handled all my questions professionally and even gave me great feedback that put my mind at ease. All that without even giving a single penny! So of course I hired him! So far so good...

Klenk Law Logo
Stars

Rachel Roney

Peter has done a great job with the estate planning for my father. He is very thorough and patient as we, the family need to make decisions.

Klenk Law Logo
Stars

Ronald W.

Peter and his staff are very responsive and always willing to help my clients and in a cost efficient manner.

Klenk Law Logo
Stars

Bill

I met Peter soon after he started his practice in Philadelphia, PA. He and his team have always been there for me and my various inquiries throughout my life-changing events, corporate relocations. I have lived in various cities throughout the nation, I have never had a problem in contacting Peter or a member of his team. He and his office responds quickly and returns calls to me to fulfill my requests for information or to revise my estate needs while posing relevant thought-provoking questions that I need to consider to secure my future. One of Peter's best qualities is his ability to answer clients complicated questions in a simple way to ensure comprehension.

Let us put our expertise to work for you.

Free consultation within 24 hours.