Full Estate Administration

How Can Our Family Law Solicitors Help?

When a loved one passes away there are so many different matters to take care of that administering the estate can be a daunting prospect. We know that dealing with a loss will be a difficult enough time for you and your family, and are here to help by offering a full Estate Administration service, which can deal with every practicality of a loss.

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What is Included in Full Estate Administration?

A Full Administration would include all of the core elements of an administration such as:

• Checking the validity of the Will
• If there is no Will identifying the persons entitled to apply to be appointed legal personal representative and who is entitled to share the estate.
• Making the application for the grant of probate
• Collecting assets
• Paying debts
• Preparing estate accounts

As well as the following additional items;

• Collecting belongings from the Hospital, Property or Care Home
• Obtaining a medical certificate from the Doctor
• Registering the death with the local Registry office
• Obtaining the Death Certificate
• Organising the Funeral. We will try our best to respect all of your loved one’s funeral wishes, including the type of service (burial, cremation, etc.), the location, music and hymns, as well as complying with any religious beliefs. We will also arrange flowers, liaise with the minister to prepare a suitable eulogy, inform friends & family of the funeral and place obituaries in local papers.
• Making sure any and all properties are secure. This will include arranging insurance and changing locks if necessary.
• Collecting all paperwork from the property, or any executor and relatives, allowing us to write to all the various companies and organisations they had any dealings with and identify all the assets & liabilities in the estate.
• Arranging valuations on properties, their contents, and any other assets.
• Organising for properties to be cleared, and for any gifted items to be delivered to the appropriate beneficiaries.
• Dealing with the re-homing of any pets.
• Offering supports and guidance to executors and family members, either through appointments at any of our offices, or direct home visits.
• Arranging re-direction of post
• Preparing ‘Trustee Act Notices’. These protect executors against any unknown creditors, who may come forward an attempt to state a claim on the estate.
• Liaise with all organisations that your loved one had dealings with, such as service providers, cancelling any appointments, etc.
• Arrange for the property to be properly maintained if it is unoccupied. If necessary, we can organise cleaners and gardeners, have bins put out, and generally keep the property looking tidy and presentable - which will be particularly helpful if it is to be sold.
• Speak to estate agents and arrange for any properties to be marketed and sold. We can then work alongside our firm’s property department to handle the legal side of the sale.
• If the estate includes any land, we can investigate if it is suitable for any development or planning permissions. This will help it to be sold for the best value.
• Investigate the Inheritance Tax position of the estate. We can identify all available reliefs and exemptions. These can include Spouse Exemption, Charitable Exemption, Agriculture Relief, Business Property Relief, and any applications for Transferable Nil-Rate Bands and Residence Nil-Rate Bands. We can then advise all executors on the amount of Tax payable and help decide where best to pay it from.
• Dealing with any business/farm ownership or interests. We can work with Accountants to obtain full valuations and then organise the sale and transfer.
• Distributing monies to all beneficiaries, and work closely with Tracing Agents to research the family tree and locate any family members who may be difficult to contact.

*The items in Bold would only tend to be completed if Banner Jones are acting as the exector.

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