Wills, Probate & Lasting Powers of Attorney

The Court of Protection exists to safeguard vulnerable people who lack the mental capacity to make decisions for themselves. Those decisions may relate to the person’s finances or to their health and welfare. The Court may appoint third parties (Deputies) to manage a vulnerable person’s affairs and may also supervise individuals who have been appointed under a Lasting Power of Attorney

A Lasting Power of Attorney is created by a person who has full capacity who wishes to appoint someone that they trust to act on their behalf, if they become physically or mentally incapable in the future. This can relate to financial affairs and/or health and welfare decisions

Learn more about how Lasting Powers of Attorney work

An attorney can act during a person’s lifetime but the authority to act ceases immediately upon death. An executor is the person appointed by a will to deal with the administration of an estate following death

A power of attorney ceases immediately on death. The original Lasting Power of Attorney must be sent to the Office of the Public Guardian for cancellation

Probate is the “proving” of a will by the court. It formalises the appointment of the executors who are named in the will and gives them the legal authority to deal with the estate.

Any assets held in the sole name of the deceased can be dealt with by certain family members in a strict order of priority. An application is made to the court who ensure that the applicant is correctly entitled. The court then grants Letters of Administration to enable the estate to be administered. There is no formal procedure required for jointly held assets which transfer automatically to the surviving co-owner, although depending on the value of the assets, and whether any exemptions are available, these could be subject to Inheritance Tax

This depends upon the value of the estate and the type of assets held by the deceased. If a house or other property is involved, then probate is generally required to sell or transfer that asset. Sometimes an estate can be dealt with under the Small Estates Procedure where the banks and other organisations will release funds without the need for probate

Yes, a will can be challenged after probate is granted. Claims can be made against the validity of a will (for example if the claimant believes that the deceased lacked capacity or was unduly influenced by a third party) or by certain people who were dependants of the deceased

This is generally six months after Probate is granted, although the court may grant an extension in certain circumstances