This enables your segregated fund assets to bypass probate (the process by which a court formally approves a will as the valid and last testament of the deceased person), thereby minimizing the costs of probate. Probate is often a lengthy, costly, and public process. Since the money held within a segregated fund bypasses probate, proceeds are paid directly and quickly to your named beneficiaries, saving your beneficiaries the time and costs involved in the probate process. Additionally, segregated fund contracts are not public documents, so the disposition of the assets stays private, unlike assets distributed through a will.