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JARGON BUSTER
Click on any word in the list below and the plain definition will appear at the top of the page. ASSENT
BENEFICIARY
CAPITAL GAINS TAX (CGT)
ENDURING POWER OF ATTORNEY (EPA)
ESTATE
ESTATE ADMINISTRATION
EXECUTOR
GRANT OF REPRESENTATION (GRANT)
INCOME TAX
INFORMANT
INHERITANCE TAX (IHT)
INSOLVENT ESTATE
INTESTACY
ISSUE
LEGATEE
LETTERS OF ADMINISTRATION
MINOR
PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE
POWER OF ATTORNEY
PROBATE
PROFESSIONAL EXECUTOR
RESIDUARY ESTATE
TESTATOR
TRUST DEFINITIONS & TERMS
The definitions below have been written in a 'plain English' manner. Behind some of them lie detailed and complex areas of law which space does not permit. Therefore if you are in any doubt or have concerns regarding a definition, please do seek local legal advice. Back to index
ASSENT
A legal document and process whereby land and/or buildings are transferrerred by the Personal Representative to a beneficiary or any other person entitled.BACK TO INDEX BENEFICIARY
A person or organisation (charity etc) that receives a benefit from an Estate Administration (inheritance).BACK TO INDEX CAPITAL GAINS TAX (CGT)
CGT may be due when disposing of an asset or for assets realised (sold) during the lifetime of the deceased and a gain in value was made.
The Personal Representative is responsible (and personally liable) for collecting the tax and paying it to the Inland Revenue.BACK TO INDEX BACK TO INDEX BACK TO INDEX ESTATE ADMINISTRATION
This is the term that describes the entire process of sorting out the affairs of someone who has passed away. BACK TO INDEX EXECUTOR
Like the Administrator (see above) an Executor is the person who has been appointed to carry out or assist with the Estate Administration but has been appointed in a Will.
Authorisation to undertake the Estate Administration is immediate upon death of the person who wrote the Will. However, the appointment can be cancelled (renounced) or the Executor can reserve power and permit a different Executor named in the Will or a Professional Executor to do the job itself.BACK TO INDEX
GRANT OF REPRESENTATION
A Grant of Representation is the legal document described below as either a Grant of 'Probate' or a Grant of 'Letters of Administration'. It effectively grants the person(s) named in the document the legal right to undertake the Estate Administration.BACK TO INDEX
INCOME TAX
Income tax is a tax due on all taxable income received by the deceased during his/her lifetime up to the date of death. Sometimes a refund may be due to the Estate.
The Personal Representative is responsible and liable for collecting any tax due and must complete an Income Tax Account to the deceased's last tax office.BACK TO INDEX
INFORMANT
The person who registers the death at the Probate Registry office by providing the relevant information on the deceased (date of birth, marital status etc). BACK TO INDEX
INHERITANCE TAX (IHT)
If the total estate (including half of jointly owned assets) exceeds a certain limit laid down by the Government (the Nil Rate Band), Inheritance Tax at the rate of 40% is payable to the Capital Taxes Office.
The Personal Representative (Executor or Administrator) is responsible and liable for collecting the tax within six months of the month in which the death occurred.BACK TO INDEX
INSOLVENT ESTATE
This is where the Estate is effectively bankrupt e.g. the debts and liabilities of the Estate exceed the assets.
The Personal Representative is liable for all of the costs associated with employing a Professional Executor to deal with an insolvent Estate.BACK TO INDEX
ISSUE
Any child, grandchild, great grandchild of the deceased or remoter descendants including illegitimate and adopted children.BACK TO INDEX
INTESTACY
The legal rules that strictly dictate who are the beneficiaries after a death where no Will is found. These rules also state who can apply to Administer the Estate (the Administrator).
Any person who dies without a Will is said to have died Intestate.BACK TO INDEX
LEGATEE
Any person who receives a gift under a Will.BACK TO INDEX
LETTERS OF ADMINISTRATION
If a Will cannot be found then the Estate Administration proceeds without an Executor. Therefore the person who is legally entitled to administer the Estate has to be established in law. A Grant of Letters of Administration looks almost identical to a Grant of Probate (except that there is obviously no Will attached to it) and officially appoints an Administrator.BACK TO INDEX
MINOR
Any person under the age of 18 years e.g. the age of minority. Over 18 is described in law as the age of majority.BACK TO INDEX
MINOR:
Any person under the age of 18 years e.g. the age of minority. Over 18 is described in law as the age of majority.BACK TO INDEX
PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE ('PR')
The Personal Representative (known as the 'PR') is the person officially undertaking the Estate Administration, whether he/she is an 'Executor' (appointed by Will) or 'Administrator' (appointed by a Court when no Will exists). BACK TO INDEX
POWER OF ATTORNEY
When you give someone a POWER OF ATTORNEY you are providing the person (or persons) with the legal authority to deal with your affairs on your behalf. It is therefore a very powerful legal document.
Unless you place restrictions on the powers that you provide, in other words you draft a 'General Power of Attorney', the Attorney can withdraw funds from your bank account(s) and even sell your house. Although the document itself is reasonably straightforward, the drafting of a Power of Attorney should not be undertaken without legal advice.
A straightforward Power of Attorney lasts for a period of only one year and ceases to be valid if you lost mental capacity through illness or accident at any time.
If you would like to provide someone with a Power of Attorney that does NOT expire and even continues if you lost mental capacity then you need to draft an ENDURING POWER OF ATTORNEY.BACK TO INDEX
PROBATE:
Only when there is a Will is a Grant of Probate issued. A Grant of Probate is the name for a document which is issued and officially sealed by the Family Division of the High Court. The most important thing stated in the Grant is the name of the executor(s) because all asset holders e.g. banks, insurance companies etc will release money only to the person(s) named within a Grant of Probate.BACK TO INDEX
PROFESSIONAL EXECUTOR
The term 'Professional Executor' is used to describe certain persons who undertake Estate Administrations in a professional capacity (Solicitor, Bank or Trust Corporation) whether not a Will exists.BACK TO INDEX
RESIDUARY ESTATE
With Estate Administrations, once the funeral and other debts of the deceased have been paid, tax has been paid and any gifts in a Will have been given, what is left of the Estate is legally known as the Residuary Estate.BACK TO INDEX
TESTATOR
The person who has written the Will. If female then she can be described as the Testatrix.BACK TO INDEX
TRUST
A legally binding arrangement whereby property or money is held by a 'Trustee' for the benefit of someone, the 'Trust Beneficiary'.
A Trust is a way of 'suspending' legal entitlement until a specified event has occurred e.g. reaching a certain age. Trusts are also used in order for the person setting up the Trust to continue controlling an asset long after his/her death (maximum period 80 years), or in order to benefit from tax reductions.BACK TO INDEX
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