Trust & Estate Practice Checklists

checklist (chek-list), noun: a list of things to be checked or done; e.g., a pilot’s checklist before takeoff.
— Merriam–Webster

Sounds straightforward enough. In reality, however, there are many different types of checklists, with varying layers of complexity. But we can sort them into three basic categories:

      1. One-time checklists (for tasks that are done all at once)
      2. Ongoing checklists (for tracking when a series of upcoming tasks are due)
      3. Date-of-record checklists (for documenting when a particular task was done)

Let’s look at each, with a particular eye toward their relevance to estate settlement and planning.

First Degree: One-time Checklists

A universal example of a one-time checklist is a grocery list, which is about as basic as a checklist can get. But even a basic grocery checklist can have various levels and sublevels.

To maximize efficiency, for instance, you should organize the list so that items from each section of the store are grouped together: frozen foods, produce, dairy, paper products, etc.

Another way to improve efficiency (and most people have already done so) is to put your grocery list on your phone instead of on a piece of paper. A digital list is easier to edit, and you can use the organizing template over and over again.

Second Degree: Ongoing Checklists

Checklists get more complicated when they are used to track activities that take place over a period of time, rather than contemporaneously.

These checklists typically have deadlines for some or all of the tasks and may also indicate who is responsible for completing each task (elements that are typically moot for first-degree checklists).

Trust and estates practices typically have complex workflows that must be managed over long periods of time — often several years. This will frequently translate into a checklist with over 100 tasks for estate settlement, so a particular organizational structure typically makes sense. The checklist could be structured according to the type of activity (e.g. Probate, Administrative or Tax related) or the general phase of that activity (e.g. First 3 months, 3–9 Months, Post 9 Months).

Once we start working with deadlines and assignees, we want to focus on tasks that are past due or imminent, as well as on individual responsibilities.

Another critical feature of an effective second-degree checklist is that it must be quick and easy to use. As the checklist gets longer, reflecting more tasks and more deadlines, it’s important to be able to mark tasks complete with a minimum of effort. That gives the whole team confidence that the information is likely to be up to date.

The goal is to maintain an at-a-glance breakdown of what’s been done so far and what hasn’t been done yet.

Finally, you want to be able to sort the checklist depending on your focus. For example:
      •   What are the tasks assigned to a specific individual?
      •   Which tasks are past their due date?
      •   What deadlines are coming up next?

Each of these views should be available with a single click.

Third Degree: Date-of-Record Checklists

Sometimes, you don’t just care whether something has been done or not — you really want to know when the task was completed. This may be because it is a Date of Record for the case, or because the date of completion triggers subsequent tasks.

You could train your team so that they always record the date of completion when marking any task complete. But doing this for every task undermines the ease of use that is so important for long and complex checklists — especially when you only require this Date of Record discipline on a subset of the tasks on your checklist.

One approach is to maintain Dates of Record independent of the checklist, along with other important case information.

Alternatively, if you really want to have the actual completion date for a task on your checklist, then we recommend calling that out as a specific task — “Enter date Form 706 filed” for example, typically without any due date.

1, 2, 3: All Together Now

At EstateWorks, we love checklists and we think hard about how to make them as effective as possible in practice.

You may be using spreadsheets or calendars to try to stay on top of your workflow and are bumping into limitations that you need to address.

If you would like to discuss how we might be able to help you structure and track work within your trust and estates practice, please get in touch. It’s what we do.

Schedule a Demo

The Three Degrees of Checklists

First Degree: One-time Checklists

Second Degree: Ongoing Checklists

Third Degree: Date-of-Record Checklists

1, 2, 3: All Together Now

More Trust and Estates Workflow Resources

What Makes Trust & Estates Workflow Different?

Video Tour of EstateWorks

4 Basic Building Blocks for Effective Trust & Estate Checklists