What is Probate

The Supreme Court deals with all matters involving wills and the administration of deceased estates. This includes appointing a person to deal with a deceased person's property following death. The Court does so by making a grant.

A grant is an order by the Court providing the executor/administrator with the authority to deal with the deceased person's property. Banks and other financial institutions, Landgate, and share registries will often require a copy of the grant or to see the original version when dealing with the executor/administrator on the deceased’s person’s property.

An executor/administrator must apply to the Court to obtain a grant. The purpose of these pages is to explain the application process.

Being an executor or administrator of an estate comes with a number of responsibilities which will often come at a time when you are dealing with the loss of a loved one. Probate can be a complex area of law and we do recommend you seek the assistance of a lawyer if you are finding the process difficult.

Types of grants

The type of grant required will depend on whether the deceased left a valid will and if so, the terms of the will, or whether the deceased died without leaving a valid will. This can be a complex area of the law and you may require the assistance of a lawyer, especially if applying for letters of administration.

• Probate - where a person has died leaving a will that nominates a person as executor the Court may grant Probate to that person.
  
  
• Letters of Administration with the Will Annexed - where a person has died leaving a will that does not name an executor or where the only executor named in the will is unable or unwilling to apply for a grant of Probate, the Court may grant Letters of Administration with the Will Annexed to an appropriate person who will usually be a beneficiary of the deceased's estate.
  
  
• Letters of Administration - where a person has died without leaving a valid will the Court may grant Letters of Administration to an appropriate person who will usually be a beneficiary of the deceased's estate.

Last updated: 1-Mar-2019

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