Probate not done, now beneficiary deceased

[The Ghoul]

Let's say John and Mary are married with an adult child Paul. John dies and the family home and joint bank accounts go to Mary via survivorship. Probate not needed. Mary is sole beneficiary. Mary and Paul are executors in the will

However after John's death, it becomes apparent that John had one bank account in his sole name which according to the bank will need probate as the balance is over 25,000 euro.

For various reasons including Mary's poor health, a few years pass without anything happening. Then Mary dies leaving the family home and a couple of bank accounts to Paul who is sole beneficiary.

Now, Paul needs probate for John and probate for Mary in that order, correct? Is this something that would be complex and difficult, could it be done without or with minimal involvement of a solicitor?

 

[TomEdison]

John does need probate for Paul and probate for Mary. He can apply for them simultaneously; he doesn't need to apply for one first, and the other later.

I'm afraid I don;t know whether the fact that the application for probate for John is late means that it will be complicated and a solicitor will be needed; I would hope not. Whether a solicitor will be needed in relation to the application of probate for Mary depends on how complex Mary's estate is.

In both cases, whether you need a solicitor isn't a simply binary. There's a trade-off between your appetite for dealing with unfamiliar bureaucracy and your willingness to spend a lot of your own time on the matter, versus the significance of the legal fees you would incur by employing a solicitor. Ultimately only you can strike that balance for yourself.

 

[The Ghoul]

Thanks, I'm looking at the online SA.2 forms for both John and Mary now and they are not too bad, certainly much more user friendly than the old CA24 pdf.

If I do both probates at the same time, I'm not sure how to or if I need to include John's not yet probated bank account in Mary's SA.2.

Would it be an "other asset" in Mary's Assets section? Or perhaps it would be captured by "Was the deceased entitled to any interest in expectancy in any property at the date of their death?" question in Mary's Questionnaire section?

 

[Brendan Burgess]

I do think that this is one for a solicitor.

 

[jpd]

I don't think you can do the two simultaneously - John's will have to completed before Mary's can be submitted

 

[The Ghoul]

I don't think you can do the two simultaneously - John's will have to completed before Mary's can be submitted

That would be my thinking. Would this be something that the probate office could advise on, it seems to be a procedural issue rather than a legal one.

There is zero possibility of any legal challenges here - the only beneficiaries are Mary (now deceased) and Paul. Paul has no siblings or close relatives.

John's will bequeaths everything to Mary but in the event that Mary predeceases John, bequeaths everything to Paul. Similarly, Mary's will bequeaths everything to John but in the event that John predeceases Mary, bequeaths everything to Paul.