Grants of Probate/Administration
When someone dies they may leave assets in their name e.g. a house, Bank accounts, shares, insurance policies. These assets will need to be sold, encashed or transferred to the person(s) who is entitled to them (the beneficiary) and someone will have to arrange this. Whoever holds the assets e.g. the Land Registry, Bank, Share Registrars, Insurance Company may want to see a Grant before releasing the assets.
There are three main types of grant.
- Where a deceased leaves a valid Will appointing an Executor who is able and willing to prove the Will, then a Grant of Probate will be issued to him.
- Where the deceased has left a valid Will but no Executor was appointed or he is unable or unwilling to act, then a Grant of Letters of Administration with the Will annexed will be issued to the person entitled.
- Where the deceased has not left a valid Will, then a Grant of Letters of Administration will be issued to the person entitled.
Grant of Probate
When a person makes a Will they appoint an Executor to administer their estate when they die. The Executor will have power to sell, encash or transfer assets belonging to the person who has died (the Testator) and to pay funeral expenses, debts and liabilities of the Testator. Generally speaking, if the Testator leaves assets worth more than £5,000 these will be released to the Executor on sight of a Grant of Probate. This is an Order of the High Court of Justice and confirms the authority of the Executor to administer the Testator’s property in England and Wales.
Grant of Letters of Administration With Will Annexed
A person (the Testator) may have made a valid Will but failed to appoint an Executor. The Executor may have died before the Testator or be unable to act due to ill health, old age or lack of mental capacity. He may decide he does not want to act and will renounce his office. A simplified order of priority of those people who are entitled to take out a Grant of Letters of Administration with Will annexed is set out below.
- A person who holds a residuary gift in the Will on trust for someone else e.g. where the Will contains a gift of the remainder of the Testator’s estate to A and B in trust for C and D, then A and B will have first priority to the Grant.
- Any other residuary beneficiary e.g. any person who is entitled to a share in the remainder of the Testator’s estate.
- The personal representative of anyone in (2) above e.g. if the Testator left his estate to X who survived the Testator but died before taking out the Grant, then his personal representative could do this in his place.
- A person who was left a gift in the Will e.g. a gift of money or a property.
- The personal representative of anyone in (4) above
The Grant which is extracted will confer authority on the person to act in the administration of the Testator’s estate.
Grant of Letters of Administration
A person (the Intestate) may die without leaving a Will. The order of priority of entitlement to the Grant of Letters of Administration is the same as the order of entitlement to benefit from the Intestate’s estate.
- A spouse/civil partner
- Issue (i.e.children or remoter lineal descendants)
- Parent(s)
- Brother(s) or sister(s) of the whole blood or their issue
- Brother(s) or sister(s) of the half blood or their issue
- Grandparent(s)
- Uncle(s) or aunt(s) of the whole blood or their issue
- Uncle(s) or aunt(s) of the half blood or their issue
- The Crown, (The Treasury Solicitor)
The Grant which is extracted will confer authority on the person to act in the administration of the Testator’s estate.
Re-Sealing a Grant in the UK
Sometimes people living in a country outside the United Kingdom die leaving assets in the United Kingdom. A grant is taken out in that country and it can then be re-sealed by a Probate Registry in England and Wales thereby constituting the Grantee the representative of the deceased’s estate in England and Wales so the assets can be distributed. Only Grants issued in the territories to which the Colonial Probates Acts apply may be resealed in the United Kingdom and reciprocal arrangements enable Grants issued in England and Wales to be resealed in the same countries.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who inherits when there is an Intestacy?
There is an order of distribution which applies to people who die without Wills.
Who can extract the Grant on an Intestacy?
The order of priority of entitlement to a Grant is the same as the order of entitlement to the Intestate’s estate.
If there are several of people in the same class entitled to the Grant e.g. three children, does the oldest have priority?
No. You are all equally entitled to extract the Grant.
Can I extract a Grant without instructing a Solicitor?
Yes, but this will involve a personal attendance at a Probate Registry. You should contact the Probate Registry in your District. You will find the telephone number in Yellow Pages.
Is there a fee for extracting a Grant?
Yes. If the estate is worth over £5,000 a fee of £40 is payable to the Probate Registry. It is useful to have some sealed office copies of the Grant and these cost an additional £1 each.
How FJG Can Help
If you are appointed an executor of a Will or if you are the person entitled to extract a Grant in an intestacy, then this can be quite a daunting experience which can involve a great deal of your time.
If the estate is substantial, you may find you have to complete an Inland Revenue Account and raise Inheritance Tax before you can obtain a Grant. You will need to obtain probate valuations of all the assets at the date of death which could involve instructing an Estate Agent to value property and Stockbrokers to value shares. You will also need to finalise the income tax affairs of the person who has died.
Sometimes there are beneficaries in the Will who have moved away (or perhaps there is no address in the Will for them) and there could be problems tracing them.
We can help by acting for you. We will arrange all the necessary valuations, complete all accounts and documents to lead to the Grant. We will arrange closure of Bank accounts, sale of shares and property. We are able to instruct genealogists to trace missing beneficiaries and, ultimately, we will pay out any legacies in the Will and what is left to the residuary beneficiaries.
For further information contact Kate Wombwell on 01206 578282 or e-mail at kwombwell@fjg.co.uk, Susanne Grimwade on 01206 835300 or e-mail sgrimwade@fjg.co.uk
or Richard Hildrow on 01206 578282 or e-mail at rhildrow@fjg.co.uk.