What happens with a Will after death?

[sandie]

What happens if someone dies without a will is it the eldest that automatically becomes the one who is in charge of the estate.

Also if a younger member of the familly takes the estate without notifying the eldest is this an offence.

How do I find out what was the estate was worth and how it was divided.

Any advice would be helpful.

Thanks

[whitehorses]

What happens if someone dies without a will is it the eldest that automatically becomes the one who is in charge of the estate.

Also if a younger member of the familly takes the estate without notifying the eldest is this an offence.

How do I find out what was the estate was worth and how it was divided.

Any advice would be helpful.

Thanks

 

You need to ask a solicitor to act for you if this concerns you personally.Do you have the dates of death and full names of all the people concerned?If someone dies without a will, a solicitor has to advertise in papers for members of the deceased family to come forward if they wish to make a claim. Then the whole estate goes to probate, where the person claiming the estate has to go to a magistrate and swear before them that he/she is legally and truthfully entitled to the estate.It is at this point that you are supposed to mention any other surviving relatives.

[Tripitaka]

When someone dies intestate, documentation is usually required to prove lineage to the deceased i.e. deathcert, marriege cert. Once lineage has been confirmed, and a search has been undertaken to see if any wills have been registered at the probate registry, then these papers are sent to the probate registry. Depending on what you are after - letters of administration, grant of probate etc, the probate registry should grant them to however many executors have requested the documents.

 

The solicitors doing the probate should advise the executor(s) that all monies etc should be equally divided between the parties that are rightfully entitled to such. Failure to do so is an offence.

 

At least that is how I remember from when I did probate many years ago......

[abbie]

thanks for that

[willman]

the executor administers the will regardless of who the solicitor is.

however in my experience certain well known and named solicitors do usually have themselves on as an executor and inevitably end up administering it.