Wills

Wills & Probate

Making A Will  

 Who should make a Will? and Why?

• You are married and have children
• You live with your partner but you are not married
• A will is the only way to ensure that whatever you leave is distributed
  with the minimum delay
• You are a homeowner
• You set up your own business or firm
• You are getting divorced or separated
• You wish to leave some money/assets to your relatives
• You wish to leave some money/assets to someone with disabilities.
• You want to give some money/assets to a charity or a special cause.
• You want to reduce the tax liability
  on your estate allowing you to leave more to your loved ones and
  favourite causes.

What happens if I leave a gift to someone who is under 18 years of
age?
Where a Will gives a Gift to a person under the age of 18 years then Trustees
should be appointed to hold the Gift for the person in question until
he/she attains full age or such age as is designated in the Will. Executors
and Trustees can be the same persons. In other words you can appoint the
same two persons to act both as Executors and Trustees.
When dealing with persons under the age of 18 years one must also consider
the question of Testamentary Guardians. The appointment of a Testamentary
Guardian may be the most important decision you will make as you are entrusting
the care of your children, on your death, to them. You have to ask yourself
the question who would look after my young children if I died. Naturally
very few people have a large choice in this matter and normally they would
like to see their children reared together by a close relative. Executors
and Trustees can also be Testamentary Guardians. You may, therefore, appoint
two people to do the entire job.

Should I make my Own Will?
The short answer to this question is no. Your Will may be the most important
Document you ever have to sign. It is essential that you are properly
advised and that you execute this Legal Document in the correct format.
The Laws governing the format of Wills are very strict and even a minor
divergence from the Legal requirements can result in your Will being held
to be invalid. You will then have lost your one and only chance to leave
your property in the manner you desire. The Law will then take its course
and an Administrator will be appointed and all you possess will be distributed
in accordance with the Laws of Intestacy. This may result in someone you
care for receiving nothing.

Revocation of a Will.
Section 85 of the Succession Act, 1965 deals with the revoking of a Will.
Where a single person has made a Will, the subsequent marriage of the
person shall revoke the Will, unless the Will was made in contemplation
of that Marriage. In other circumstances, a Will can be revoked either
by (1) another Will, (2) a codicil, (3) some writing declaring an intention
to revoke the Will, and executed in the manner in which a Will is required
to be executed, (4) by the burning, tearing or destruction of the Will
with the intention of revoking it.

Is Making a Will Expensive
The answer to this question is also no. We charge €100 to draft a Will. Where a married couple are making mutual wills we charge €150 for both wills.

What does Intestacy mean ?
Intestacy is where a person dies without having made a Will or where the
Will they have made is found to be invalid. The consequence of this is
that the Succession Act of 1965 directs the division of the assets in
accordance to the blood relationship to the deceased person. If there
are no living blood relations surviving the deceased then the deceased’s
assets are forfeited to the State. Distribution on Intestacy

Probate

Probate is a legal process that allows a person to deal with a deceased
person’s assets e.g. property, money, life policies, credit union accounts,
etc. in accordance with the wishes expressed by the deceased person in their
Will. The authority to do this is given in the form of a document from the
Probate Office known as a “Grant of Representation” and also known
as a “Grant of Probate”. This document is necessary if a person
dies leaving property in his/her name to enable the property to be sold
or transferred into the name of another person. The same principle applies
if the deceased person died leaving money in a bank or other financial institution
or has life policies in his/her sole name. The bank or insurance company
will not release the money to the Executor without a Grant of Representation.
The person with this authority is the Executor named in the deceased’s
Will (or if the Executor is not alive or is unwilling to act, the person
entitled to take out the Grant is usually the nearest living relative and
is known as the Administrator. Executors and Administrators are often referred
to as the “legal personal representatives”.

What is the process for extracting a Grant of Representation?

The legal personal representative usually engages the services of a solicitor
to carry out the process of extracting the Grant of Representation on their
behalf. The process of extracting a Grant of Representation is as follows:-

• Step 1:
  All assets and liabilities are quantified. Property should be
  valued by a Valuer/Auctioneer.
• Step 2:
  A Tax Form (Inland Revenue Affidavit) is completed in which the
  Personal Representative sets out all the assets and liabilities
  and identify any taxes due.
• Step 3:
  The Revenue Commissioners review the Tax Form and raise appropriate
  queries. When satisfied that a proper tax return has been made
  Revenue certify that the estate can proceed to Step 4.
• Step 4:
  The Personal Representative completes Affidavits to apply to the
  Probate Office for a Grant of Representation
• Step 5: The Grant of Representation issues and assets can be collected
  and land transferred.