Notice To Decedent_s Surviving Family Members Of Potential Rights To Awards (Cook)

There are all sorts of forms executors, beneficiaries, and probate court clerks have to fill out and correspond with during probate and estate settlement, including affidavits, letters, petitions, summons, orders, and notices.

Notice To Decedent_s Surviving Family Members Of Potential Rights To Awards (Cook) is a commonly used form within Illinois. Here’s an overview of what the form is and means, including a breakdown of the situations when (or why) you may need to use it:

Atticus Fast Facts About Notice To Decedent_s Surviving Family Members Of Potential Rights To Awards (Cook)

Sometimes it’s tough to find a quick summary— here’s the important details you should know about Notice To Decedent_s Surviving Family Members Of Potential Rights To Awards (Cook):

• This form pertains to the State of Illinois

• The current version of this form was last revised on June 12, 2023

Government forms are not typically updated often, though when they are, it often happens rather quietly. While Atticus works hard to keep this information about Illinois’s Form Notice To Decedent_s Surviving Family Members Of Potential Rights To Awards (Cook) up to date, certain details can change from time-to-time with little or no communication.

Step 1 - Download the correct Illinois form based on the name and ID if applicable

Double check that you have both the correct form name and the correct form ID. Some Illinois probate forms can look remarkably similar, so it’s best to double, even triple-check that you’re using the right one! Keep in mind that not all States have a standardized Form ID system for their probate forms.

Step 2 - Complete the Document

Fill out all relevant fields in Form Notice To Decedent_s Surviving Family Members Of Potential Rights To Awards (Cook), take a break, and then review. Probate and estate settlement processes in IL are long enough to begin with, and making a silly error can push your timeline even farther back. No thank you!

Note: If you don’t currently know all of the answers and are accessing Form Notice To Decedent_s Surviving Family Members Of Potential Rights To Awards (Cook) online, be sure to avoid closing the browser tab and potentially losing all your progress (or use a platform like Atticus to help avoid making mistakes).

Step 3 - Have Form witnessed or notarized (if required)

Some States and situations require particular forms to be notarized. If you have been instructed to get the document notarized or see it in writing on the document, then make sure to hire a local notary. There are max notary fees in the United States that are defined and set by local law. Take a look at our full guide to notary fees to make sure you aren’t overpaying or getting ripped off.

Step 4 - Submit Notice To Decedent_s Surviving Family Members Of Potential Rights To Awards (Cook) to the relevant office

This is most often the local probate court where the decedent (person who passed away) is domiciled (permanently resides) or the institution involved with this particular form (e.g. a bank). Some offices allow you to submit forms online, other’s don’t, and we while we generally recommend going in-person to expedite the process, sometimes that simply isn’t an option.

It’s also a generally good idea to establish a positive working relationship with any probate clerk (unfortunately there’s enough people & process out there making things more difficult and unnecessarily confusing for them), so a best practice is to simply ask the probate clerk proactively exactly how and where they’d prefer you to submit all forms.

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Different probate forms or processes can require different deadlines or response times for completing the appropriate form.

While some steps in the process are bound to specific deadlines (like petitioning for probate, having to submit an inventory of assets, or filing applicable notices to creditors and beneficiaries), many probate forms or processes are not tied to a specific deadline since the scope of work can vary based on situational factors or requirements involved.

Either way, there are a bunch of practical reasons why personal representatives should work to complete each step as thoroughly and quickly as possible when completing probate in Illinois.

5 reasons you should submit this form as quickly as possible:

1. The sooner you begin, the faster Illinois can allow heirs and beneficiaries to get their share of assets subject to probate. Acting promptly can also decrease the costs & overall mental fatigue through an otherwise burdensome process.
   
   Helpful Context: What’s the Difference Between Probate and Non-Probate Assets?

2. In general, creditors of an estate usually have around 3-6 months from the time you file notice to creditors to file any claims for debt against the deceased’s assets. If they don’t, then that debt is forfeited (and more importantly, the executor won’t be held personally responsible). So doing this sooner means you have a better idea of who is owed what and ensures you won’t get a surprise collector months later.

3. Not filing a will within 30 days (on average) could mean that the probate process proceeds according to intestate laws (laws that govern what happens to someone's stuff without a will) or is subject to unnecessary supervision by the probate court. And if you aren't directly related to the deceased (a.k.a. next of kin), this could also mean you lose your inheritance.

4. It’s important to file any necessary state tax returns on behalf of the deceased or estate by the following tax season in Illinois. If you don’t, you could owe penalties and interest. This also includes any necessary federal tax returns such as Forms 1040, 1041, or even a Form 706 estate tax return.

5. If a house in the State of Illinois is left empty (or abandoned) for a while, insurance can get dicey. For example, if the house burns down and no one has been there for a year, an insurance company may get out of paying your claim.

If you’re not using Atticus to get specific forms, deadlines, and timelines for Illinois probate, then try and stay as organized as possible, pay close attention to the dates mentioned in any correspondence you have with the State’s government officials, call the local Illinois probate clerk or court for exact answers regarding Form Notice To Decedent_s Surviving Family Members Of Potential Rights To Awards (Cook), and when in doubt— consult a qualified trust & estates lawyer for that area.

Notice To Decedent_s Surviving Family Members Of Potential Rights To Awards (Cook) is one of the many probate court forms available for download through Atticus.

It may also be available through some Illinois probate court sites, such as . In order to access the latest version, be updated with any revisions, and get full instructions on how to complete each form, check out the Atticus Probate & Estate Settlement software or consider hiring a qualified legal expert locally within Illinois.

While Atticus automatically provides the latest forms, be sure to choose the correct version of Form Notice To Decedent_s Surviving Family Members Of Potential Rights To Awards (Cook) f using any other site or resource in order to avoid having to re-complete the form process and/or make another trip to the Illinois probate court office.

Notice To Decedent_s Surviving Family Members Of Potential Rights To Awards (Cook) is a .pdf, so opening it should be as simple as clicking “View Form” from within the Atticus app or by clicking the appropriate link found on any Illinois-provided government platform. Once you’ve opened the form, you should be able to directly edit the form before saving or printing.

Here’s the text, verbatim, that is found on Illinois Form Notice To Decedent_s Surviving Family Members Of Potential Rights To Awards (Cook). You can use this to get an idea of the context of the form and what type of information is needed.

______________________, Clerk of the Circuit Court of _____________ County Page 1 of 1 (06/12/2023) NOTICE TO DECEDENT’S SURVIVING FAMILY MEMBERS OF POTENTIAL RIGHTS TO AWARDS Under §§15-1 and 15-2 of the Probate Act of 1975 [755 ILCS 5/15-1 and 5/15-2] certain surviving members of a decedent’s family are entitled to be awarded from the decedent’s estate sums of money for their support for the period of 9 months after the death of the decedent. Surviving Spouse. The surviving spouse of the decedent is entitled to receive a sum of money that the court deems reasonable for the surviving spouse’s proper support in a manner suited to the surviving spouse’s condition in life and to the condition of the estate. The surviving spouse is entitled to receive an additional sum of money for each minor child of the decedent who was residing with the surviving spouse at the time of the decedent’s death. The sum of money is the amount that the court deems reasonable for the proper support of the minor child. The surviving spouse is also entitled to receive a sum of money for each adult child of the decedent who was residing with the surviving spouse at the time of the decedent’s death and who was financially dependent on the decedent and is likely to become a public charge. The sum of money is the amount that the court deems reasonable for the proper support of the adult child in a manner suited to the condition in life of the adult child and to the condition of the estate and must be consistent with the financial support that the decedent was providing to the adult child immediately prior to the decedent’s death. If you are the surviving spouse of the decedent and elect to receive the surviving spouse’s award, you must provide to the representative written notice in the form set forth on the following page. In the case of the award for an adult dependent child, failure to do so within 30 days after receiving this notice will be a bar to the right to receive the award. Adult Child Not Residing with Surviving Spouse. An adult child of the decedent who was not residing with the surviving spouse of the decedent at the time of the decedent’s death and who was financially dependent on the decedent and is likely to become a public charge, may be entitled to receive a sum of money. The sum of money is the amount that the court deems reasonable for the proper support of the adult child in a manner suited to the adult child’s condition in life and to the condition of the estate and must be consistent with the financial support that the decedent was providing to the adult child immediately prior to the decedent’s death. If you are an adult child and believe that you qualify for the award, you must provide to the representative written notice in the form set forth on the following page. Failure to do so within 30 days after receiving this notice will be a bar to the right to receive the award. Please share this notice with any person whom you trust for advice. Minor Child Not Residing with Surviving Spouse. A minor child of the decedent who was not residing with the surviving spouse of the decedent at the time of the decedent’s death is entitled to receive a sum of money. The sum of money is the amount that the court deems reasonable for the minor child’s proper support in a manner suited to the minor child’s condition in life and to the condition of the estate. If you are a minor child and elect to receive the award, you, or your agent or guardian or other adult on your behalf, must provide to the representative written notice in the form set forth on the following page. Please share this notice with your guardian or other person whom you trust for advice. Case No. Calendar Estate of Deceased IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF _____________ COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT – PROBATE DIVISION