As such, in case of insolvency, legal assistance is advisable. All debts have to be ascertained and paid, or provisions for payment must be made, before the estate is distributed to the beneficiaries. An example of a debt incurred after death is the management fee of a property that is owned by the deceased. Debts can be incurred both before and after the death of the deceased. You should consult your own lawyer if you want to obtain further information or legal assistance concerning any specific legal matter. The information available at the Community Legal Information Centre (CLIC) is for preliminary reference only and should NOT be considered as legal advice.
How to distribute the remaining estate in the will; and7. Basic information at the beginning of the will, such as the date of creation and description of the testator;2. For more information on probate, please visit Probate。 If in doubt, you are strongly advised to seek legal advice. The teenage daughters may apply for maintenance and have a good chance to get more than what they get under intestacy laws. The deceased died intestate recently and her husband emerges out of nowhere asking for his share from the estate (i.e. more than 1/2).

What property constitutes assets?

• In that case, a testator must also specify the conditions in which the executor will receive the legacy, e.g.
• A residuary gift is the remaining assets of an estate after all the specific and general legacies have been paid and other necessary provisions have been made.
• For a person who died on or after 11 th February 2006 , the relevant application fee is $265 and the fee for engrossment of a Grant is $72.
• No matter whether you are a vendor or a purchaser, the first party that you have to deal with is normally the estate agent.
• More specifically, families or dependents of the deceased may claim against the estate if they contend that they should be given a share (if not provided under the will or intestacy) or a large share than the share that they are now given under will or intestacy.
• The beneficiary may commence an administration action to compel the personal representative to do his/her work properly.
• (2) give details of movement of assets, incomes and expenditure of the estate;

Therefore, it is worth knowing more about the services provided by estate agents. No matter whether you are a vendor or a purchaser, the first party that you have to deal with is normally the estate agent. (iii) Vendor and purchaser sign a provisional (or preliminary) agreement for sale and purchase of the selected property (the provisional agreement is usually provided by the estate agent). (i) A vendor finds an estate agent(s) to sell the property, and/or a purchaser finds an estate agent(s) to search for appropriate properties to buy; More specifically, families or dependents of the deceased may claim against the estate if they contend that they should be given a share (if not provided under the will or intestacy) or a large share than the share that they are now given under will or intestacy. Note also that there may be claim under Inheritance (Provisions for Families and Dependents) Ordinance (Cap. 481) within 6 months of grant.

Abolition of Estate Duty and the procedures for applying for a Grant of Representation

If the executor does not wish to take up the appointment, or if no executor appointed by the deceased survives, then the person entitled to the residuary legacy in the Will has priority to apply for a Grant of Letters of Administration (with the relevant Will annexed). If the estate is insolvent, the personal representative must take extra care. The personal representative has to take reasonable steps to make sure that there is no outstanding debt owed by the estate before distribution. When there is a dispute between persons entitled to a Grant in the same degree (i.e. they are all equally entitled to apply for the Grant), an application has to be made to the High Court to determine who will be appointed as administrators.

• The maximum number of administrators (or adminstratrix in case of a female) of an estate is four .
• They will only be entitled to part of the estate (after deduction of the spouse’s entitlement) if the deceased leaves no issue and no parents.
• Under r.21 of Non-Contentious Probate Rules (Cap. 10A), the persons having a beneficial interest in the estate are preferred to be granted the administration.
• A grant de bonis non may be made to any person who is equally entitled as the previous grantee.
• The situation may be different if the will specifically asks the personal representative to run the deceased’s business for a period, or if all the beneficiaries so agree.
• When there is a dispute between persons entitled to a Grant in the same degree (i.e. they are all equally entitled to apply for the Grant), an application has to be made to the High Court to determine who will be appointed as administrators.
• The power of an executor stems directly from the Will.

The law of your country of domicile as at the date of your death governs gifts of movable properties such as shares and money in bank accounts. Your domicile as at the date of death can have implications on the disposition of estate in your Will. Typically, the Court requires evidence that at least one medical practitioner has examined and confirmed the ill testator’s mental capacity before signing the will, and has witnessed the process.
In general, a person has the testamentary freedom to decide by his/her will as to how to distribute his/her assets after he/she dies. The way to take inventory is to physically search and ascertain those personal belongings of the deceased. Then, the applicant should follow the application procedure for summary administration or a Grant of Probate/ Letters of Administration (as the case may be). If more assets are found later resulting in the value of the estate exceeding $50,000, the Applicant should notify the Director of Home Affairs and, if a confirmation notice has been issued, return it for cancellation. The holder of the confirmation notice will be exempted forzabet from the intermeddling provisions and deal with the estates without any grant. Even if the total value of the estate exceeds $7,500,000, only a $100 nominal estate duty will be charged.
It is typically used when a testator wishes to make minor changes to their existing will by adding, amending, or revoking part of it. A codicil is a legal document that supplements a will. If the answer is no, the deceased will die intestate.

Can I write my own will without the help of lawyers?

When making a Will, it is advisable for special trust provisions to be arranged for a beneficiary who is a disabled. If no provision is made in a Will and a common disaster occurred rendering it uncertain which spouse survives the other, then the younger is deemed to have survived the elder. If the Will is silent on this matter, these properties will fall into the residue of the estate and will be sold, with the proceeds forming part of the cash residue. For example, if the deceased has two flats (one of them in Hong Kong and the other is situated outside Hong Kong), then the foreign property will not be included in the estate in respect of the Grant of Representation in Hong Kong. On the other hand, the law governing disposition of land/flats (real estate) which are “immovable” is the law where the land/flats are located. The law in some countries (but not in Hong Kong) requires that you must leave a certain proportion of your estate to your children or widow.

What if the estate includes a business?

If the wife insists that she should get more from the estate than what the laws of intestacy stipulates, she may make an application under Inheritance (Provision for Families and Dependents) Ordinance (Cap. 481). Unless the will shows contrary intention, that beneficiary’s issue will take, in equal shares if more than one, the assets that the deceased originally left behind for that beneficiary. For legal reasons, it is advisable to put the agreement in a deed and have every beneficiary sign it. In case where a professional executor is appointed instead, a charging clause would usually be included in the will which authorizes that professional executor to charge at a certain rate for the work carried out for the estate. Exceptions include where the will expressly providing so, e.g. by way of a gift if the executor is a family member.
54 of Non-Contentious Probate Rules (Cap. 10A), an application for an order for a grant of special administration under section 37 of the Ordinance where a personal representative is residing outside Hong Kong shall be made to the court on motion. A personal representative has a duty to administer the assets of the estate according to the law with due diligence. E.g. if the beneficiaries consider the personal representative having unduly initiated or defended a legal action, they may ask the court not to allow the representative to be reimbursed from the estate for the legal costs. Please also note that a death certificate is generally needed to support an application for a grant of personal representation of the estate of the deceased. Where a personal representative is residing abroad, an application can be made for a grant of special administration if no previous grant has been made. The personal representative of the deceased grantee should first apply for a ‘leading grant’ in the estate of the deceased grantee before applying for the grant de bonis non.

If the executor refuses to take up the appointment, you should use Form C2.2 to call upon the executor to accept or refuse probate under r.46(1) of the Non-Contentious Probate Rules (Cap. 10A). You may apply for the issuance of a citation by the Probate Registry to the executor under s.30(1) of Probate and Administration Ordinance (Cap. 10). Yes, if the person has an interest in a deceased’s estate.

The beneficiaries of an estate may come up with an agreement as to how the estate be distributed. For more information about the distribution of estate under the law of intestacy, please see “If the deceased made no will, how can the relevant estate be distributed” and “What if there are no beneficiaries to distribute to? In such circumstances, the entitlement will go to the residuary estate and be distributed according to the will and/or intestacy laws, as may be applicable. A person will not be forced to take up if he or she does not want to. If the matrimonial property is worth more than his/her share under intestacy, he/she may pay the shortfall to the estate in return for the whole of the matrimonial property. If he/she profit himself/herself from the estate, e.g. use the estate’s money to invest for his/her own profit, he/she will liable to account for the profit so earned.
For instance, the testator executed the will under threats. However, if a testator were a) mentally ill or b) extremely ill and were under medication, he needs to prove that he was conscious for a period such that he knew and agreed to the content of the will when the will was signed. For example, a clause is inserted in the Will stating that the subsequent marriage with a named person shall not revoke the Will. Usually a person has to take action to revoke his/her own Will. No matter whether or not the deceased has made a Will, generally a Grant of Representation will have to be obtained from the Probate Registry of the High Court of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region before any of the deceased’s assets in Hong Kong can be dealt with.