You must sort through the deceased person's possessions if you are the personal representative or executor of their estate. You must then distribute their personal property to the people specified in their will or in a separate personal property memorandum.
While some of a deceased person's possessions, like jewelry, pictures, paintings, silverware, china, and furniture, may be easier to divide among family members because of their monetary and sentimental value, other possessions, like financial records, insurance policies, utility bills, and tax returns, might be more difficult.
What documentation should be kept?
As attorneys handling estate administration, we advise keeping the following records:
- Original birth and death certificate (both for the deceased person and any predeceased spouse)
- Original marriage certificate, prenuptial agreement and decree of divorce; Original stock, bond and other asset ownership certificates
- Income tax returns from the past three years and supporting documents (e.g., Form W-2, Form 1099, Form 1099-R, receipts for charitable deductions, etc.)
- Gift tax returns
- Estate tax returns for a predeceased spouse
- Check registers, bank account statements, retirement account statements, credit card statements, medical statements and utility bills for the year of death (and for any prior year for which the decedent has not filed an income tax return)
- Retirement plan documents (e.g., pension paperwork, annuity contracts, etc.)
- Insurance documents (life insurance policy, homeowners’ insurance policy/umbrella coverage, etc.)
What to do if you are unsure if a document should be kept?
In general, it is better to save a document than toss it away if it appears to be essential and is not on the list above. Send any documents you're not sure about keeping to your estate administration lawyer so they may evaluate them and provide you guidance on what to do.
How long should these documents be kept?
You should maintain all other records for at least three years following a person's passing or three years following the filing of any estate tax return, whichever comes later, with the exception of birth, death, marriage, and divorce certificates, which you should keep forever.
What should be done with the remaining documentation?
You might be left with a pile of papers after going through the deceased person's papers and putting the aforementioned documents aside. In order to reduce the risk of identity theft, it is generally a good idea to shred documents that contain any personal or financial information.
You can hire a document management company to pick up the papers and securely shred them at an offsite facility if you don't have a shredder or if the volume of papers makes it impractical to shred them at home. The cost of hiring a document management company is typically an expense that the estate is reimbursed for.
