Points to Consider

The first question is:

1. “Is there a valid Will”?
   If yes, then it should say who the Executors are. They get their powers to deal with the assets comprising the Estate right away. However, some assets in the Estate may need a Court Order (called A Grant of Probate) to be issued to deal with land or property, cash assets, bank accounts, shares, life policies and other investments. This is to protect financial institutions (banks, building societies etc) or the Land Registry from 3^rd party claims.
2. If there is no (valid) Will or no living Executors an Intestacy is said to arise. This will invariably require a Court Order (or in this case a Grant of Letters of Administration) which gives the person(s) managing the Estate, “the Administrators” the legal power they need to deal with the assets. We can help you identify early on who should be the Administrator(s), also known as “Personal Representatives”.

In all cases where a formal Grant is required, an Oath or Statement of Truth is needed and a Tax Return prepared (which can be highly complex if Inheritance Tax (IHT) is involved) and all of these documents are sent to the Court when applying for the Grant.

Other questions are:

“what happens if there is no money in the Estate”?

“are there any assets outside of England and Wales in the Estate”?

“who are the Beneficiaries”?

“did the Deceased make any lifetime gifts”?

We can help you with all of the above and much more besides so please Contact Us for more information.