Probate & Administration

Where a deceased died with a valid Will (or testatment), his estate is said to be testate. In a testate estate, his estate (assets) will be managed by the Executor(s) appointed under the deceased's Will.

The Executor(s) appointed under the Will will usually appoint a law firm to apply to the Court for a Grant of Probate (as opposed to a Grant of Letters of Administration in an intestate estate). There are other variations of applications for grant of representation (eg. where all the appointed Executors have died).

Where a deceased died without a valid Will (or testatment), his estate is said to be intestate. In an intestate estate, his estate (assets) will be managed by Court appointed person(s) called Administrator(s). Persons who can apply to the Court to be appointed as Administrator(s) depend on his/her/their legal relationship with the deceased.

Depending on the value of the deceased's estate, in an application for the Grant of Letters of Administration, the Court may require the Administrator(s) to procure 2 sureties to execute an Administration Bond in favour of the Court. If the Administrator(s) is/are unable to provide 2 sureties, the Administrator(s) may apply for a dispensation of this requirement. Whether such application can be successful depend on the circumstances of each case.

Apart from resealing cases, if a deceased died domiciled outside Singapore and has assets in Singapore, his or her personal representative(s) will need to apply for a grant of representation such as a Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration in Singapore in order to deal with the deceased's assets here.