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Dealing with your Estate
Death isn’t something everyone feels comfortable about, but it is inevitable. We help many families to get through the practicalities of winding up and ingathering the estate of their loved one who has passed away. Lawyers call this process and Executry in Scotland (Probate in England).
The Executry process involves finding out about the assets and liabilities of the deceased person. When that’s been done, we submit the details to the court and obtaining Confirmation (in England, Probate). Once Confirmation is granted, we then ingather and distribute the estate.
Is the process the same whether there’s a Will or not?
There is a difference at the beginning of the process where there’s no Will. When the deceased has made a Will, an executor will be appointed. The Executor is the person (or persons, if more than one) who will deal with the administration of the estate. Where there is no Will, an application is made to the Sheriff Court to have an Executor appointed. This is usually a family member. We’ll also need to arrange a Bond of Caution, which is an insurance document, which protects the beneficiaries’ interests when the estate is being wound up and distributed. This means it’s more expensive to wind up and ingather an estate where there isn’t a Will.
How long will it take?
Much depends on whether there’s a Will, the extent of the estate, how quickly those who owe money to the estate respond and how quickly the assets can be realised. Whilst we’ll promptly deal with all aspects of the Executry, we are dependent on others co-operating with our enquiries.
How will it be divided?
If there’s a Will, the estate will be divided amongst the beneficiaries named in the Will. If there’s no Will, the estate will be divided in accordance with the law of succession in Scotland. This will entail something called Prior Rights to which a spouse is entitled and Legal Rights to which a spouse and children are entitled. We will explain all of this to you at the outset.
If it takes a long time to wind it all up, what happens?
In some cases, it can take a long time to ingather all the assets and distribute them. On these occasions, it’s not unusual to make interim payments to account. If the estate is taking a long time to realise, it’s likely that a payment to account will be made.
Each estate is unique. We’ll deal with the winding up and ingathering process as quickly and efficiently as we can. We’ll also report to you every step of the way.
Do you need help to wind up the estate of a loved one?
We will help you with efficiency and sensitivity