What to do when a William Blair account holder dies
Contact William Blair's Private Wealth Management / Wealth Strategy — 4-step process, 9 required documents, and varies by account type and estate complexity. tod/beneficiary claims can process in days to weeks once a certified death certificate and beneficiary identification are provided; accounts requiring probate proceed only after letters testamentary or letters of administration are issued.
William Blair & Company, L.L.C., 150 North Riverside Plaza, Chicago, IL 60606
Private Wealth Management / Wealth Strategy
William Blair & Company, L.L.C., 150 North Riverside Plaza, Chicago, IL 60606
William Blair & Company, L.L.C., 150 North Riverside Plaza, Chicago, IL 60606
When an account holder at William Blair passes away, the next step depends on how the investment accounts were set up. Accounts with beneficiary designations or trust ownership transfer outside of probate. Accounts titled solely in the deceased's name require the estate's legal representative to work with William Blair's estate services team ((312) 236-1600) to access and distribute the funds.
Gather the account holder's full name, date of birth, and any known account or policy numbers before contacting William Blair. A certified death certificate is the primary document required to start any claim.
Death claim process
Follow these steps to file a death claim with William Blair:
Filing a claim
- Contact the decedent's William Blair private wealth advisor directly
- If advisor is unknown, call the main number at (312) 236-1600 or client services at 1-800-730-6003 (Monday-Friday 8:30 AM-5:00 PM CT) or email PWM@williamblair.com
- Advisor notifies internal teams and freezes the account
- Obtain certified death certificates (multiple copies recommended)
- Locate important documents: will, trust, beneficiary designations, Social Security number
- Submit required documents to the advisor
- For TOD accounts: beneficiary presents death certificate and government ID to claim assets without probate
- For probate accounts: submit Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration
- Estate account may be opened if needed (requires estate EIN)
- Consider engaging professional advisors (attorney, accountant) for complex estates
- Assets distributed per will, trust, or beneficiary designations
Required Documents
- Certified death certificate (multiple copies)
- Government-issued ID for executor, trustee, or claimant
- Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration (if going through probate)
- Copy of the will or trust document (if applicable)
- William Blair estate/claim forms (provided by advisor)
- Estate EIN (if opening estate account)
- Inherited IRA application (for IRA beneficiaries)
- Inheritance tax waiver (required by certain states)
- Decedent's Social Security number
What to know at this institution
Contact the decedent's private wealth advisor first (or client services at 1-800-730-6003 / PWM@williamblair.com if the advisor is unknown); the advisor notifies internal teams and freezes the account. William Blair publishes a downloadable "Financial Guide to Settling the Affairs of a Loved One" (https://www.williamblair.com/Insights/Settling-the-Affairs-of-a-Loved-One) with a step-by-step outline covering locating documents, forwarding mail, notifying creditors, filing final tax returns, and working with professional advisors. For TOD-designated brokerage accounts, assets transfer directly to named beneficiaries without probate; retirement accounts pass to named beneficiaries via an inherited IRA. An estate account (requiring an estate EIN) may be opened for assets that must pass through probate. Because all client assets clear through NFS (Fidelity), transfers are executed at William Blair's direction through the NFS custody platform.
Prepare your letter of instruction to William Blair
William Blair accepts a claimant-drafted letter of instruction. We draft it for you — addressed to William Blair's verified claims department, with the documents it requires enclosed.
Build your letter of instructionExpected timelines at William Blair: Varies by account type and estate complexity. TOD/beneficiary claims can process in days to weeks once a certified death certificate and beneficiary identification are provided; accounts requiring probate proceed only after Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration are issued. Delays are almost always caused by incomplete paperwork—gathering all required documents before filing the initial claim helps avoid back-and-forth.
Documentation required by William Blair includes Certified death certificate (multiple copies), Government-issued ID for executor, trustee, or claimant, and Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration (if going through probate), along with additional paperwork that varies by account type. All death certificates and court documents must be certified copies.
Frequently asked questions
Contact your assigned William Blair private wealth advisor to request the appropriate form: a Transfer on Death (TOD) Agreement for brokerage accounts or an IRA Beneficiary Designation Form for retirement accounts. Provide each beneficiary's full legal name, date of birth, SSN, relationship, address, and percentage allocation. You can also coordinate through the My William Blair portal at https://www.williamblair.com/mywilliamblair or by calling client services at 1-800-730-6003.
Contact the decedent's William Blair private wealth advisor, or call 1-800-730-6003 if the advisor is unknown. Provide certified death certificates and government-issued ID. For TOD accounts, assets transfer to named beneficiaries without probate. For accounts without a TOD designation, Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration are required. William Blair publishes a guide on settling affairs at https://www.williamblair.com/Insights/Settling-the-Affairs-of-a-Loved-One
William Blair publishes several estate planning resources including an Estate Planning Checklist (https://www.williamblair.com/Insights/Estate-Planning-Checklist), guidance on digital assets in estate planning, and articles on trust strategies such as SLATs and GRATs. The wealth strategy team works with clients' tax and legal advisors on wealth-transfer planning. A downloadable guide on settling affairs after a death is available at https://www.williamblair.com/Insights/Settling-the-Affairs-of-a-Loved-One
William Blair's estate services team can be reached by phone at 1-800-730-6003 and email at PWM@williamblair.com for questions throughout the claims process.
If the deceased held multiple William Blair investment accounts, each may require a separate claim or have different documentation requirements. The estate services team can confirm which accounts require individual attention and which can be processed together.
Sources
Data sourced from William Blair primary sources (21 pages reviewed). How we research.
William Blair & Company, L.L.C., 150 North Riverside Plaza, Chicago, IL 60606
Private Wealth Management / Wealth Strategy
William Blair & Company, L.L.C., 150 North Riverside Plaza, Chicago, IL 60606
William Blair & Company, L.L.C., 150 North Riverside Plaza, Chicago, IL 60606
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