Glossary

Administrator

The person, normally the next of kin, who handles the financial affairs of the deceased where a Will has not been made.

Asset

Anything of value that you own.

Attestation

The correct confirmation of the Will. The Will includes an Attestation clause that is signed by its owner.

Attorney / Attorneys

The person or people appointed in a Lasting Power of Attorney document to manage someone’s financial (LPA Property & Finance) or welfare (LPA Health & Welfare) issues, when they are still alive but unable to manage by themselves.

Beneficiary / Beneficiaries

The person or people who will receive money or other benefits from a Will.

Bequest

A gift left to a person, organisation or charity in a Will.

Business Trustee(s)

The person(s) controlling a trust containing business assets.

Capital

The value of any assets, rather than any income from them.

Charge

A liability, registered against property, which must be paid off when it is sold or transferred.

Children

Children of any family in which the deceased at any time stood in the role of parent.

Codicil

A legal document altering or adding to an existing will. It must be witnessed in its own right and kept with your will.

Contractual Rights

Rights that can be enforced by law under a contract.

Conveyance

A document or process transferring ownership of land or buildings.

Deed

A legal document that must be witnessed.

Deed of Gift

The transfer of the property, or share of property, from one person to another. Sometimes the husband, wife or one civil partner will own the whole of the property but the owner wants it to be owned as Tenants in Common, one partner gifts a share to the other.

Donor

The owner of the Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA).

Estate

The value of your assets when you die, less any debts or liabilities.

Executor/Executrix (male/female)

The person, people or organisation (such as a solicitor or bank) appointed in a Will to deal with financial affairs of the deceased.

Family Trust

A Trust established during the Clients lifetime designed to prevent any formal administration being necessary upon death. The Trust can also simplify generation skipping or protection measures.

Gift

An asset you give completely to someone else.

Grant of Probate

The Court’s authority for the Executors to deal with the deceased's financial affairs. Issued by the Probate Registry or Sub-Registry.

Guardian

The person or people appointed by the Testator to have parental responsibility for children or dependants if they die.

Home

Your main or only home, often referred to as your principal private residence.

Income

Any money or interest generated by an asset, rather than the value of it.

Intellectual Property

Anything you have created and protected by a patent or copyright, for example.

Intestate/Intestacy

The term given to dying without a Will.

Intestacy (Partial)

Where the deceased leaves a will that fails to distribute the whole estate, or where there is no Executors appointed and able to act.

Intestacy (Rules of)

The rules governing how the estate of an Intestate must to be divided. The rules are fairly complicated.

Irrevocable

A document that cannot be revoked or cancelled.

Joint Tenants

One of the two different ways two or more people can own a single property. When one of the joint owners dies the property will automatically be owned by the surviving joint tenant owner irrespective of what that person’s Will might state. Each owner owns 100% of the property.

Joint Tenants in Common

The second of the two different ways that two or more people can own a single property. Each owner owns an individual share in the property and can leave it to whomever they wish in their Will.

Lasting Power of Attorney (Property & Finance)

A document, separate from a Will, which allows a person to appoint people to manage their financial affairs (called Attorneys) while they are still alive but unable to manage.

Lasting Power of Attorney (Health & Welfare)

It is also possible to have an LPA (Health & Welfare) document drafted, whereby Attorneys are appointed to help manage health and welfare issues when the customer is unable to manage.

Legacy

A gift left to a person or organisation in your will.

Letter of Wishes

Guidance about your wishes, which your trustees do not have to follow.

Liabilities

Debts or bills that must be paid from your estate after you die.

Lifetime Gift

Something you give away while you are alive rather than by your Will.

Literary Estate

All published and unpublished work written by you, and any associated royalties.

Literary Executor

The person who will manage your literary estate.

Mirror Will

A set of two Will documents that are similar in content. Such documents are normally written for couples. Mirror Wills have replaced Joint Wills which were rather inflexible.

Mutual Wills

Mutual Wills cannot be changed after one of you has died.

Occupant

The person(s) allowed to live in a property under a trust arrangement.

Pecuniary legacy

A gift of money in a Will.

Personal Chattels

Tangible moveable property other than money, securities or investments and business assets.

Probate

Legal procedure followed after death to ensure that your Will is valid and which gives the executors power to deal with your estate.

Probate Registry

The legal office (sometimes a sub-registry), like a court, which grants appointed people permission to administer the deceased person’s estate.

Property

Anything owned by a person, not just a building or land.

Residual Beneficiaries

Persons who will benefit from the residual estate.

Residue/Residuary Estate

Whatever remains in your estate after all debts, taxes and gifts have been deducted.

Revoked

A document that has been cancelled, rather that altered.

Schedule

List of assets in a trust or Will.

Settlement

Another word for a trust.

Settlor

The person who sets up a Trust.

Severance of Tenancy

The procedure that enables Joint Tenant owners to convert to Tenants in Common.

Specific Legacy

A gift of specific item such as personal possessions; e.g. jewellery, or land, buildings or investments such as shares.

STEP Provisions

Standard wordings to help executors and trustees do their job.

Survivor

The last person within a defined relationship or group to die.

Tenants in Common

Persons who own a defined (often equal) share of a property.

Testator/Testatrix (male/female)

The owner of a Will.

Trust

An arrangement where property is owned by trustees for someone else's benefit.

Trust Period

How long the trust can exist before it is wound up and distributed. The maximum is 125 years.

Trustees

The person/people or organisation that looks after anything in the Trust before passing the assets to the beneficiaries at the appropriate time.

Will (Last Will and Testament)

Quite simply, a legal document which details a person’s wishes for after they have died.

Will Trust or Trust

A clause written into the Will that acts like a safety deposit box or safe. When the person dies certain assets are passed into the Trust by the Executors.

Witnesses

Two independent people who are required to sign the Will stating that they have observed the Testator signing it. The witnesses must not be benefiting from the Will or be married to (or be in a civil partnership with) anyone benefiting from the Will.