At death, your assets will be distributed according to the provisions of your will, assuming it was property executed, witnessed, can be located, and is presented to a court of competent jurisdiction for probate. In many cases the surviving spouse is named the personal administrator (called an executor in some jurisdictions). Although the attorney who is selected to handle probate of the estate can and should assist the personal administrator, in many cases it is a great burden to deal with the probate of an estate, especially for an elderly surviving spouse. The probable mental health, physical health, and other relevant circumstances of a surviving spouse should be considered when choosing a personal administrator. In addition, in the unfortunate circumstance where both husband and wife die nearly simultaneously, there will be no surviving spouse to act as personal administrator. It is obvious that none of this is simple. As a result it is important, if possible, to select an individual to administer your estate that has some business sense and perseverance, particularly in the event of near simultaneous death of both spouses. In order to avoid problems, including conflicts of interest, the attorney who will handle the estate is not an acceptable choice as personal administrator, and this is a fact of law in some jurisdictions.