Preserving & Maintaining Estate Assets

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Distributing the assets of a loved one who has passed can be an extremely emotional process. The stress can be heighted if there is no Will in place and it is not clear who is to administer the estate.

What Is An Estate?

An estate is the net worth of an individual and takes into account their:

This includes assets which are in joint names.

What Is An Executor?

In the preparation of a Will, the testator (person for whom the Will belongs to) or the deceased is required to nominate a person called the ‘executor’ who will be responsible for managing or administrating of the estate once the testator passes.

The role of the executor is to represent the deceased and to finalise their personal, financial and any legal affairs.

The executor is generally someone who the deceased can trust and who has agreed to take on the role.

The deceased will generally have their wishes expressed in their Will, and the executor must carry out the wishes in accordance with the Will.

The executor’s role after the deceased’s passing is to:

It is important to note that the executor cannot distribute the assets of the estate without going through the prior steps. A Will alone without Probate will not give the executor the power to distribute the estate, even if its in accordance with the Will.