Executors who are appointed under a will usually have
to obtain a grant of probate before they have authority
to deal with the assets in an estate. The procedure
for obtaining a grant of probate will vary depending
upon the nature of the assets and their value.
If an estate is "excepted" (i.e. the value
of the assets and relevant lifetime gifts is under a
certain figure) then executors should only have to complete
a short form Inland Revenue account, then sign an oath
before forwarding the will, account and the oath to
the Probate Registry. A fee will be payable to the Probate
Registry and a grant of probate should follow within
three to four weeks. Once a grant of probate is received
then the executors have authority to deal with assets
within the estate and can proceed with the administration.
If the estate is not "excepted", then in
addition to the above, executors will need to complete
a detailed Inland Revenue account and pay any tax that
may be payable on the death. There are stringent penalties
imposed upon executors by the Inland Revenue if the
executors fail to include in the Inland Revenue account
full details of all assets.
Intestacy
If you die without having made a will then you are
said to have died "intestate". If this happens
then the laws of intestacy govern who is to inherit
your estate and this can lead to unexpected and undesired
results. For example, if you do not leave a will then:-
-
If you are married your spouse will not automatically
inherit all of your estate.
-
If you are not married your partner will not inherit
your estate.
-
You will not have made any provision for who should
be appointed as guardians for your young children.
-
You have not appointed anyone to act as your executor.
-
The administration of your estate is likely to
take significantly longer to complete than if you
had left a will.
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