Estate Administration

No, will writing is a specialist area of the law and we would recommend using the services of a solicitor.  It is a good idea to review your will every few years, or after a major life change, to ensure it still reflects your wishes.  Again, a solicitor is best placed to advise on this.  Whilst Lovewell Blake are not licensed to apply for probate, the application is a straightforward process, so we can assist the executors in implementing the will.

The beneficiaries will be contacted by the executors, who notify them of their entitlement under the will.  We work with executors to assist them with this.  After the executors have received Grant of Probate, the will becomes a public record.  Beneficiaries can request a copy from either the Probate Registry or from the executor.

This is not usually necessary, although would be of benefit in the following situations:

• The estate is complex, e.g. it contains significant assets, trusts or foreign assets

• There are concerns about the will’s validity, or if it is unclear or ambiguous

• There are concerns about the actions of the executors

The administration of an estate varies from case to case, and we have experience in dealing with a wide variety of estates.  We guide executors, step-by-step, through the whole process.  This includes instructions and guidance on how to identify and value assets and how to settle debts and tax liabilities.  We can prepare any inheritance tax return required and submit this to HM Revenue and Customs, as well as dealing with all other tax compliance both up to date of death and throughout the period of administration.  We can assist the executors with the distribution of the estate to beneficiaries and prepare estate accounts; to enable executors to demonstrate they have complied with legal requirements and so they can provide beneficiaries with a clear understanding of how the deceased’s assets were managed and distributed.