What is
probate?
After a
person dies somebody has to deal with their estate (money
property and possessions they have left behind) by collecting in
all the money, paying any debts and distributing what is left to
those people entitled to it. Probate is the court’s authority;
given to a person or persons to administer a deceased person’s
estate and the document issued by the Probate Service is called
a Grant of Representation. This document is usually required by
the asset holders as proof to show the correct person or persons
have the Probate Service’s authority to administer a deceased
person’s estate.
There is no way
of getting a completely free probate service, even if you burned
your loved ones with the role of sorting out your affairs there are
still the physical government costs that have to be paid to obtain
probate.
When you create your will you need to appoint
Executors. It is common for people to appoint their closest family
and nominate these as Executors. It is worth considering appointing
a professional Executor rather than your close family members. At
the time of your death it is highly likely that your loved ones will
be grieving, do they really want to take on the role of the Executor
for your estate?
These duties of the Executor can include:-
-
Discovering and listing all the assets,
property, saving and investments
-
having your estate professionally valued
-
arranging your funeral
-
ensuring the will is probated correctly
-
gathering up information on outstanding debts and bills
-
working out what Income and Inheritance Taxes are due
-
making
any necessary tax returns and payments
-
completing and submitting all Probate Registry forms
-
recovering all assets
-
paying off all debts
-
ensuring all gifts and legacies are given to the correct
beneficiaries
-
creating a clear set of accounts for the estate
-
demonstrate
to the beneficiaries how they have disposed of the estate
In addition, if your estate contains Trusts
the Executors must ensure these are set-up correctly and passed to
the Trustees to manage. The Trustees have many duties including
taking good care of the assets in their Trust and where they do not
have the professional skills required they must employ suitably
skilled people. Trustees are, at all times, accountable to the
beneficiaries of the Trust they manage and if they act unwisely or
inappropriately they can be sued by the beneficiaries.
We offer a range of probate, professional
executor and professional trustee services.
These services can either be purchased as a
package when we write your will, or as required after a person
has passed away.
For sympathetic
help and guidance please feel free to give us a call on 0845 3700
240.
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