What is Probate?

One of the first things that needs to happen is to register the person's death in addition to arranging the funeral of course.

Additionally, you may need to apply for probate to access the deceased's assets and deal with their estate. 

A grant of probate is a legal document that's sometimes needed to access bank accounts, sell assets and settle debts after someone has died.

This document is only called a grant of probate if the person left a will. If they didn't leave a will, a grant of letters of administration is used instead. Both documents work in much the same way, giving a named person legal authority to deal with the estate of the person who died.

When probate has been granted, the next of kin or the executor can start to deal with the deceased person’s assets. If there was a will, this sets out how the assets should be distributed. If the person died without a will the law determines who should receive everything.

Before applying for probate, it's important to check:

• that probate is needed
• that you’re eligible to apply
• whether there’s Inheritance Tax to pay

Do refer to this link to establish if probate is needed for a particular estate: - https://www.gov.uk/applying-for-probate



If probate is needed, it's possible to deal with probate yourself, providing you're familiar with the legal process and confident completing all the required tasks. Applying for probate is time consuming and the work involved can be complex.  It's important to understand that dealing with probate yourself also carries a level of risk, because you can be held personally financially liable if you make any mistakes.

For these reasons, many people prefer the route of passing this work to a probate specialist to carry out this work for them.  Before you decide if you want to deal with probate yourself, you should think carefully about whether you have the time, energy and skill set to carry out this work.

If you'd like to learn more about this, email natascha@rocheestateplanning.com.