Only the Office of the Attorney General on Tuesday provided testimony on two bills seeking to help families avoid long and expensive probate cases over a deceased loved one’s property and assets.

Sen. Shelly Calvo’s Bill 23-38 would simplify land inheritances by creating “transfer on death” deeds, while Vice Speaker Tony Ada’s Bill 80-38 would waive the requirement for probate if a deceased person’s estate is worth less than $112,500.

Only Deputy Attorney General Norman Lee Miller Jr., representing the AG’s office, appeared to testify on the bills during Tuesday’s public hearing.

Miller testified in support of both bills.

A probate case in court can make the process of transferring land from a deceased loved one “costly, time consuming, and often burdensome,” Calvo said.

Probate is a legal process where a court validates the deceased’s will, and who inherits land and assets.

Calvo on Tuesday said the process can take months or years.

“In some cases, families are forced to sell inherited property just to cover legal expenses, leading to the loss of multi-generational homes and deepening economic instability,” she said.

The transfer on death deed provided for in Bill 23-38 would allow property owners to give their land directly to a designated beneficiary upon death, without going through probate, Calvo said.

Similar laws already existed in other states, Miller said, and it worked well.

He said the AG’s office supported the bill, as people loved to “set it and forget it,” with regards to their affairs.

But it was worth noting that residents should still invest some time in getting legal advice, especially if they left behind more than just a home and a few bills after death, Miller noted.

“Anybody who owns, frankly, much more than, one house, a couple of cars, and maybe some credit card debt. If that, if that sums up your life, then all these simple, straightforward bills are perfect for you,” Miller said.

Past that, a trust might be more appropriate than a transfer on death deed to organize what happens to their estate, he noted.

Waiver of probate

Meanwhile, Ada’s Bill 80-38 would waive the requirement for probate when a person leaves behind no real property, and an estate worth less than $112,500.

Guam law already provides an exemption, but the cap is set at $75,000.

Ada said the probate waiver for “small estates” was set up in 2016, but inflation has since driven prices up.

The proposed increase on the cap to $112,500 was based on a “conservative” estimate of 5% inflation per year since 2016, but real inflation was likely closer to 9% per year.

Miller said the measure would benefit any person who stood to inherit assets like stock, pension, or bank accounts from a deceased relative.

He did note that other states like California allowed for the small estate exemption to be adjusted for inflation every three years.

Miller said the AG’s office had the same advice for anyone looking to take advantage of the small estate waiver: “receive some legal advice to avoid financial pitfalls.”