Probate meaning

Probate refers to the court-supervised process of proving a Will.

What is meant by ‘applying for probate’?

When a person dies, it is sometimes necessary to apply for a grant of representation to deal with that person’s estate (such as land or buildings, money or other possessions owned at the date of death). This process is sometimes colloquially referred to as ‘applying for probate’.

A grant of representation or a ‘grant’ is a court-issued document which entitles a named individual to represent the deceased’s estate and distribute his/her assets. There are many different forms of grant which can issue. The two most common grants are a grant of probate (where there is a will) or a grant of letters of administration (where there is no will).

What is a grant of probate?

A grant of probate is a court-sealed document that proves an executor named in a Will has the authority to deal with a deceased person’s assets.  Applying for a grant of probate involves submitting an estate account on oath or an ‘Inland Revenue Affidavit’ to the Probate Office along with the original Will, amongst other documents (see courts service website here for further information). Once a Will has been authenticated by the Probate Office, a grant of probate will issue, and you as executor will be free to sell property, pay off debts, close accounts and distribute assets in accordance with the Will.

What is an ‘executor’?

An executor is a person named in a Will to administer an estate of a deceased person.

What is a grant of letters of administration?

A grant of letters of administration is an official court document that proves you have the authority to deal with someone’s estate where there is no Will. The key difference between a grant of letters of administration and a grant of probate is that the former is needed where there is no will. It may also be required in cases where there is a will but the executors are unable to deal with the estate. This is known as a grant of letters of administration with will annexed.

If you recently lost a loved one and stand to inherit the majority of his/ her estate under the rules of intestacy, you may need to apply for a grant of letters of administration before you can deal with that person’s assets. As part of this process, you will become the administrator of the estate.

Comparing solicitor’s fees quoted in a probate matter

When comparing prices quoted by probate lawyers to act on your behalf to extract a grant of representation you may notice that fees quoted differ by hundreds or potentially thousands of euros. That may be because each firm is quoting on a different basis.  Broadly, there are two types of service a solicitor can provide a personal representative when s/he is required to extract a grant of representation: a) apply for the appropriate grant (in which case fees tend to be lower); or b) apply for the appropriate grant and administer the estate according to the Will or the rules of intestacy (in which case solicitor fees tend to be higher). If you need the sale of land or buildings to be included in the price quoted you will need to specifically ask a solicitor to quote for this work too as otherwise it may not be included in the fee quote.