Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Key definition

Personal representatives definition

What does Personal representatives mean? In probate and estate administration, personal representatives are the individuals who step into the shoes of the deceased to collect, manage and distribute the estate. In England and Wales and Northern Ireland, the term covers executors (appointed by will) and administrators (appointed on intestacy or where no executor can act) once a grant of probate or letters of administration is issued. It is defined in legislation (for example, the Administration of Estates Act 1925). In Ireland, the Succession Act 1965 defines personal representatives likewise, with grants issued by the Probate Office. In Scotland, the officeholder is an executor (executor-nominate or...

Finding, retrieving and validating Wills: searches, HMCTS deposits, NCPR rule 50 orders and Larke v Nugus (England and Wales)

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Practice notes

Is there a Will?

The initial task for the deceased’s relatives, or the personal representatives (if they are different people), is to look through the deceased’s home and paperwork for an original last Will, a duplicate, or any correspondence indicating that a Will exists. Relevant material might sit within electronic communications, so, where access can be obtained, checking the deceased’s email inbox and computer folders is prudent. It is thought that more than half of UK adults have no Will. If that remains true at death, the estate falls into intestacy. Even where a Will is in place, if it does not dispose of every part of the estate, a partial intestacy can still arise. Although securing a grant for an intestate estate is not typically difficult, the presence of a Will tends to streamline matters and clarifies what the deceased intended for family members and friends. Practitioners should reflect carefully on whether a Will might exist but has gone missing. There are several practical avenues to pursue when there are indications that a Will exists yet it cannot be located among the deceased’s belongings and further searches and enquiries should be undertaken before finally concluding none can be found...

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Web page updated on 28/05/2026

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