Barnetts - Solicitors - Estate Agents

Executry

Bereavement is a hard time for everyone and we hope that our sympathetic, personal and informed advice will help. Please feel free to telephone our Executry Specialist Tony Ireland if you have an enquiry.

On death the help we will offer will depend on whether or not there is a Will.

If there is a Will we will advise on whether we can use the Will on its own to gather in the assets of the deceased or whether we will need to obtain on your behalf from the local Sheriff Court "Confirmation" in the Estate where the Executor appointed in the Will is officially recognised by the Court. This procedure is essential if there is property and generally speaking banks and building societies require this procedure if the assets are in excess of £10,000.

If there is no Will then if the assets are small we will be able to help without Confirmation but if the assets involve a house or more than £10,000 then a Sheriff Court Petition is required as well as an Insurance Bond before Confirmation can be obtained. This shows again the importance of having a Will.

Whether or not there is a Will you will also need to know about Legal Rights on death and how they apply. In the Wills section of this web site there is a Scottish Office pamphlet which will give you more background.