A deceased estate comes into existence when a person dies leaving a property or a document which is a will or purports to be a will or when they die intestate. Such estate must then be administered and distributed in terms of the deceased’s will or failing a valid will, in terms of the Intestate Succession Act, 81 of 1987.

 

At death the estate of the deceased is frozen, (If the deceased was married in community of property, the joint estate is frozen) and no-one may withdraw funds from the deceased’s bank accounts or deal with any of the estate assets without the necessary permission from the Master of the High Court.

 

This may create a nightmare for the surviving dependants and/or heirs of the deceased and if not handled skilfully and expeditiously, this can last for long causing protracted inconvenience to the beneficiaries. That’s when our competence, commitment, skills and location will be the game changer for our clients.

 

We can walk in the master’s office any working day of the week to follow up on your estate. We will inter-alia offer the following services:

• Ensuring that your estates planning is done rigorously, Ensuring that your final wishes are complied with and estate duty is minimized;
• The formation of a testamentary trust to ensure that assets left to minor beneficiaries are well managed, The role and power of trustees;
• The appointment of an executor;
• Reporting of a deceased estate to the Master of the High Court& Obtaining the Letter of Executorship or Letter of Authority;
• Gathering and managing all the necessary reporting documentation required to wind up the estate& Open and managing of the estate bank account
• Placing of the required advertisements in the local newspaper and Government Gazette;
• Drawing up the Liquidation and Distribution account and obtaining the Masters’ approval; Calculation and arrangement of estate duty payments to SARS;
• Finalization and the closing of the deceased estate, Estate planning and fiduciary services.