First Steps After a Death in Louisiana

A medical professional must pronounce the death. If death was expected under hospice, the hospice nurse can pronounce; if unexpected, call 911. Then choose a licensed Louisiana funeral home or cremation provider to transport and care for your loved one.

Lock the residence, keep utilities and insurance active, and avoid distributing property until authority and ownership are clear. Because Louisiana is a community-property state, first identify what was community property and what was the decedent's separate property before moving anything of value.

The parish district court needs the original signed testament (will) to open the succession. Look for the notarial testament (and any codicils), trust papers, deeds, vehicle titles, account statements, life insurance policies, and any matrimonial agreement or prenuptial contract that affects community vs. separate property.

Certified copies are issued by the Louisiana Department of Health, Vital Records Registry (Louisiana is a 'closed record' state, so only eligible persons such as the surviving spouse, certain relatives, the succession representative, or the attorney/notary handling a small succession may order). The funeral home usually orders them for you. Order more than you think you need - banks, insurers, the OMV, and the court all ask for one.

A succession is opened in the district court of the parish where the decedent was domiciled at death (or, for a non-domiciliary, where Louisiana property is located). Louisiana has no separate probate court; the district court and the parish Clerk of Court handle successions.

Separate succession assets from non-succession assets such as life insurance, retirement accounts, and payable-on-death accounts with named beneficiaries. Then classify each succession asset as community property (the decedent's one-half share passes) or separate property. This list becomes the basis for the inventory or descriptive list and for deciding whether a full succession, a simple possession, or a small succession affidavit fits.

If the gross value of the Louisiana property is $125,000 or less at the date of death (or the death occurred at least 20 years ago), the heirs and surviving spouse may use a small succession affidavit instead of opening a court succession (La. C.C.P. arts. 3421, 3431-3434). Many uncontested testate or intestate successions are closed by a judgment of possession without a full administration. A full administration (with a succession representative) is used when there are debts to manage, disputes, or a need for ongoing authority.

For a court succession, file a petition with the parish district court and Clerk of Court, attach the death certificate and the testament (if any), and file an inventory or a sworn detailed descriptive list of assets. For a small succession, all required parties (including the surviving spouse and one or more heirs) execute the affidavit before a notary; it is NOT filed with the court, but where real estate is involved it is recorded in the parish conveyance records. There is no fixed statutory deadline to open a court succession.

If a succession representative qualifies (full administration), apply for a free EIN from the IRS, then open a bank account in the succession's name. Keep succession money completely separate from personal money and keep receipts for every payment and distribution. The surviving spouse may also use the limited small-deposit release (La. R.S. 9:1513) for urgent expenses; confirm the current cap with the bank.

If the decedent left descendants and community property, the surviving spouse generally takes a usufruct over the decedent's community share and the descendants take the naked ownership (La. Civ. Code Art. 890). Identify any forced heirs (descendants 23 or younger, or permanently incapacitated descendants of any age) entitled to the legitime before distributing anything.

In a court succession, the succession representative files either a formal inventory (taken by a notary) or a sworn detailed descriptive list of the succession assets and their date-of-death values (La. C.C.P. art. 3136). This values the estate and supports the 2.5%-of-inventory default representative compensation.

Report the death to the Social Security Administration (1-800-772-1213), notify each bank and brokerage, file life insurance claims, and address debts. In a full administration, the representative may publish notice and handle creditor claims; in a simple possession or small succession there is generally no formal creditor-notice publication.

Use the succession account for all succession income and expenses, and keep receipts. Review the decedent's final federal Form 1040 and Louisiana Form IT-540, federal Form 1041 and Louisiana Form IT-541 if the succession earns income, and federal Form 706 only if the estate exceeds the federal exemption. Louisiana has no state estate, inheritance, or estate transfer tax for recent deaths.