Wills and probate rules to become more user-friendly

The system for administering wills and probate is to be given a major overhaul for the first time in more than 20 years.

Probate is the process of administering a person’s estate in accordance with their wishes as expressed in their will. A grant of probate is basically a court order confirming that a will is valid and that the executors can proceed with putting it into effect.

Now a working group is to be set up to review the Non Contentious Probate Rules. These are the rules that set out the procedure to be followed for obtaining a grant of probate when there is no dispute regarding the will.

The group is being established by Sir Mark Potter, President of the Family Division. Sir Mark said: "The current rules are far from user-friendly and provide little guidance. They have not been widely updated since 1987 and I hope that the rules produced by the working group will be more readily understood by the public, as well as bringing the procedures into line with more recent legislation."

As Sir Mark indicates, the whole area of wills and probate can be complicated. It is wise take legal advice when dealing with such matters to make sure everything is carried out correctly in accordance with the law so that any potential problems can be identified and avoided.

Please contact us if you would like more information about any aspect of wills and probate.