Glossary of terms - wills and probate
- Absolute interest: A legal term to confirm that something is given without any conditions
- Administrator: Someone who is appointed by law to settle your affairs if you die without a will
- Beneficiary: Anyone who receives a gift from a will
- Bequest or legacy: A gift in a will to a person or organisation - see the different types here
- Chattels: Personal belongings but not money, investments, property or business assets
- Codicil: A document which amends alters or adds to a will
- Devise: A gift of a house or land
- Discretionary legacy: A gift in a will whereby someone else has the discretion of how it is used or to whom it is given
- Estate: All the deceased's assets and liabilities at death
- Inheritance tax: Inheritance tax for the year 2010-11 is charged at 40 per cent on everything over £325,000. Please note that exemptions are available depending on each estate's circumstances
- In specie: Exchanging an item from the estate for a cash gift
- Intestate/ intestacy: The legal term for the situation that arises when someone dies without making a legal will.
- Issue: All the direct descendants of a person - children, grandchildren and so on.
- Legator: A person who has made a legally valid will
- Letters of administration: A document issued to administrators by the Probate Registry to authorise them to deal with the estate
- Life interest: The right to receive the income or benefit from a property or capital sum (but not the capital sum itself) for life
- Minor: A person under the age of 18
- Next of kin: In will or intestacy matters, the person entitled to the estate when someone dies intestate (without a will)
- Personal estate (personalty): All the investments and belongings of a person apart from land and buildings
- Probate: The legal process to establish if your will is valid. If it is, the Probate Registry will give a Grant of Probate to the executors to authorise them to carry out the terms of the will. If it is not valid or the person died intestate, an administrator is appointed
- Probate registry: A court within the Family Division of the High Court which deals with probate and administration matters. It checks the validity of all wills and registers them in a central database www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk/cms/wills
- Proving the will: Making the application for probate to the Probate Registry
- Real estate (realty): Land and buildings owned by a person
- Restricted fund: Monies or property required to be held for a specific project or cause, rather than for the general funds of a charity
- Specific gift: A particular item left to St Mungo's, which can be sold to support our work. For example, it could be a house, car, piece of jewellery or an antique item
- Testator or testatrix:The person making the will
- Trust: An arrangement you can make in your will to administer part of your assets after your death. For more complicated Trust provisions, you should contact a local solicitor who specialises in trusts and probate
- Will: The document in which you say what will happen to your money and possessions after your death
- Witness: Two witnesses must see you sign your will. No beneficiary (or their spouse) should sign the will; if they do, any gift to them or their spouse will be invalid and will fail
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