Estate Administration: What is Estate Administration?

In our Estate Planning 101 series, we emphasised the importance of creating a Will during your lifetime; a binding legal document that outlines how you would like your property to be dealt with upon your death. Now, we’re looking at estate administration; the legal process after death that governs the payment of debts and distribution of assets. In other words, estate administration is the legal process of actioning a Will. 

Estate administration can be a long process, often exacerbated by grief and uncertainty. At The Estate Planning Centre, our probate lawyers are committed to walking with you through each step of the estate administration process. It is our goal to make estate administration as easy as possible so that you can prioritise care for yourself and your loved ones. 

Who can be the administrator of an estate in NSW?

The administrator of a deceased estate, known as the Legal Personal Representative, is either appointed by the deceased in their Will, or by the Supreme Court of New South Wales where there is no valid Will. If there is a valid Will, then the Legal Personal Representative will be the executor(s) named by the deceased. If there are no executors or valid Will, then a person wanting to administer the deceased estate will need to apply for Letters of Administration with the Supreme Court of NSW. The Supreme Court has the authority to approve this request or instead appoint either the NSW Trustee and Guardian or any other beneficiary of the estate that the Court feels can be trusted with its administration. 

What is the responsibility of an estate administrator?

It is the responsibility of the Legal Personal Representative to wind up the estate of the deceased by paying any debts and distributing the deceased estate property. However, being able to access another person’s assets and deal with their property is a significant power. Before the Supreme Court will grant this power to a Legal Personal Representative, the Court first verifies that the Will is in fact the original Will of the deceased. Recognition of the original Will by the Supreme Court is known as a ‘grant of probate’. 

In our next post, we will discuss how to apply for a grant of probate in New South Wales.

By Jaime Dunn