Many people have heard about probate but do not fully understand the concept in its entirety. Probate is a legal process by which the court validates a will, estate debts and taxes are paid, before the remaining assets get distributed to the beneficiaries of the decedent. Unfortunately, the probate process is never as easy as it sounds and for that reason, executors often make key mistakes during the probate process. Depending on the size of the estate, the complexity of the ownership of estate assets, the number of beneficiaries or size of family and how these parties get along, probate can get pretty complicated, tiring and traumatic. This is even heightened by the fact that the family is in a state of mourning just after losing a loved one. For this reason, executors who are closely related to the deceased are likely to make one or more of the following 4 key mistakes executors often make during the probate process: Delay In Identifying And Evaluating All Estate Assets Inefficiently Handling Financial Matters And Claims Against The Estate Thinking You Can Do It All Alone Hiring The Wrong Probate Attorney.