Once the Letters of Administration/Letters Testamentary have been signed by the probate judge, the Personal Representative/Executor will need to provide a certified copy of these Letters and, in some cases, an original death certificate, to the decedent's financial institutions, along with the taxpayer identification number for the estate. This is what will allow the Personal Representative/Executor to gain access to all of the decedent's financial accounts. If the decedent owned real estate, then the Personal Representative/Executor will need to provide certified copies of the Letters to the utility companies in order to get the utility accounts transferred into the name of the estate.
While these 8 steps may seem overwhelming, this is only the precursor to the probate process. The real work begins after the Personal Representative/Executor has been appointed:
Probate Checklist - 8 Steps to Opening a Probate Estate
