Wealth Management Services

Estate Settlement

An important component of your integrated wealth plan is naming a qualified executor to settle your estate. Understanding the potential complexity of the process can help you make an informed decision that helps protect your loved ones and provide for your heirs as you wish.

If you name Wilmington Trust, N.A. as executor of your estate, you can have the comfort of knowing that an experienced, professional, and caring estate settlement team will work to carry out your wishes and effectively meet all legal and tax requirements, including:

Gather and safeguard assets
A critical role of an executor is to gather, account for, and value all estate assets and safeguard those assets from damage or loss. These tasks can be more complex when assets such as private businesses, real estate, antiques, art, cars, and other collectibles are involved.
Handle legal documents and tax issues
Your executor must comply with state law requirements, including requirements of the state probate court that has jurisdiction over your assets. An experienced executor needs to understand how to file federal and state income and estate tax returns, including an understanding of the tax and property laws of the applicable jurisdictions.
Manage complicated family dynamics
One of the most challenging aspects of serving as an executor involves managing complicated intra-family dynamics at a time of grief and loss. A corporate executor's ability to maintain objectivity during an emotionally charged period may avoid exposing the executor and the estate to costly litigation, therby maintaining the value of the assets available to the intended heirs

Serving as the executor (or personal representative) of an estate requires a significant amount of time, energy, and responsibility. Contact us to learn more about how we can help with the estate settlement process.