Fixed fee Letters of Administration, without the hassle.
Apply for Letters of Administration from the comfort of your couch with our expert estate planning lawyers.
Our expert lawyers will chat with you to understand your individual situation, explain what probate is, how much it will cost and whether you require this service.
We will work with you to advertise your intent to apply for Letters of Administration and complete the application process in your designated state or territory across Australia(excluding NT and SA).
Once the application is completed, our expert lawyers will support you in signing the documents and lodging them with the relevant state or territory-based Court(excluding NT and SA).
When an individual passed away without a Will (intestate), did not name an executor in a valid will or the Executor is unwilling or unable to act, the deceased’s closest next of kin (eg spouse or de facto spouse) will need to apply for Letters of Administration in order to administer the estate.
Letters of Administration is a court order made by the Court which allows the Administrator (the person who is appointed by the court) to distribute the assets of the deceased who died without a valid will.
Our expert legal team is experienced across all estate planning areas and can support you through this process.
Letters of Administration is a court order made by the Court which allows the Administrator (the person who is appointed by the court) to distribute the assets of the deceased who died without a valid will.
If the deceased individual dies intestate, the law in the state or territory in which the deceased died and owned assets, will determine who:
This is known as the 'rules of intestacy'.
The grant of administration is usually made to the deceased's 'next of kin', which is the deceased's closest relative.
The Court will usually grant administration to the following ‘next of kin’ (in order of priority):
In general, obtaining Letters of Administration will take approximately 8 to 15 weeks from the date the application for Letters of administration was filed with the Court (depending on the Courts backlog of applications).
Time is of the essence when it comes to Letters of Administration applications. You must submit your LOA application within six months of the deceased person’s death.
If you’re filing outside of this time frame, you will need to provide satisfactory reasoning as to why you’ve deferred your application. The bottom line is that delaying an application is a potential cause for a range of related complications depending on the circumstances.
We strongly recommend submitting your LOA applications as soon as possible to avoid any unnecessary issues.
If a Will is discovered following the grant of Letters of Administration, the appointed Executor must be informed, and the original granted order will be revoked.
In most cases, the Supreme Court will grant Probate to the rightful Executor outlined in the newly discovered Will with the administration of the estate proceeding as intended by the Will-maker.
There are costs and fees associated with filing for Letters of Administration as there are with many legal services. These costs or expenses vary between states and are also largely affected by the contents, value and overall nature of the estate.
Contact us today to discuss fees and costs involved with filing a Letters of Administration application to your local state’s court and registrar.
If there is no Will or an existing will is determined no longer valid, different states and territories will have different laws in this regard.
Generally speaking, state legislation and its respective rules of intestacy usually (but not always), dictate that an intestate death means the estate will be transferred to the next of kin, such as a spouse or children under these types of circumstances.
Please review your local state’s Successions Act or other legislation for specific rules and details.
Probate is issued by the Court to the Executor(s) named in the Will of the individual who has passed away.
Letters of Administration is a grant by the Court to a person other than a named executor or executors such as a close relation of the individual who passed away because the individual passed away without a Will (intestate), did not name an executor in a valid will or the Executor is unwilling or unable to act.
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