EDITORIAL: Bill advancing probate reform deserves support

Nevada law places few restrictions on eligibility for managing probate cases when a person passes without a will. If a family member can’t be located or has no interest in dealing with the estate of the deceased, the statutes allow for those who are “legally qualified” to oversee the process. The broad definition of “legally qualified” includes virtually anyone — even people who have no connection to the late property owner.

As a result, a cottage industry has sprung up involving private administrators, real estate investors, attorneys and others who seek to take over probate cases and who sometimes profit from their involvement while relatives receive little or nothing.

A Review-Journal investigation last year found that these third-party interests “often started cases without family involvement and routinely obtained court authority to sell homes through a process that does not require a judge’s approval of the deal or a competitive bidding that could boost the price.” They also “frequently sold homes at steep discounts to estimated values, often to the same circle of repeat buyers who resold them within months” at prices well above the cost of the original purchase. “The probate cases,” the report revealed, “often ended with nothing for heirs.”

There is a practical need to allow for the efficient and timely resolution of these cases when nobody can be found to handle the dissolution of an estate. The alternative could lead to an increase in abandoned homes and a decline in property values in disadvantaged neighborhoods. But liberal statutes open the door for abuse. Where is the justice when real estate companies and attorneys profit handsomely from dubious short sales yet the relatives of the deceased property owner are left empty-handed and are not even involved in the process?

Enter state Sen. Melanie Scheible, a Las Vegas Democrat who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee. She has introduced Senate Bill 404, which implements reforms intended to protect the heirs when a person dies intestate, the legal term when there is no will.

The legislation demands that a court make “a finding of good cause based on certain evidence” before someone is “legally qualified” to step in. The process also requires potential third-party administrators to provide evidence of their qualifications and proof that attempts were made to contact potential heirs via certified mail.

These are eminently sensible safeguards that protect the rights of families while recognizing the importance of prompt legal resolutions to these types of probate cases. SB404 deserves bipartisan support in Carson City and Gov. Joe Lombardo’s signature.