Deceased Estates Advanced: Dealing with Complex Assets and Liabilities Webinar

This session focuses on assets and liabilities that complicate deceased estate administration. The aim is to help practitioners identify, value, secure, realise, transfer, or account for complex estate items.

The session covers immovable property, business interests, farms, loan accounts, foreign assets, digital assets, trusts, contingent liabilities, suretyships, tax liabilities, and disputed claims.

Key Topics

1. Complex Immovable Property Issues

• Bonded property.
• Co-owned property.
• Property in sectional title schemes.
• Farms and agricultural property.
• Property subject to usufruct or habitation.
• Rates, levies, and municipal debts.
• Sale versus transfer to heirs.

1. Business Interests

• Shares in private companies.
• Member’s interests in close corporations.
• Sole proprietorships.
• Partnerships.
• Buy-and-sell agreements.
• Shareholder agreements.
• Valuation of business interests.
• Continuity of business operations after death.

1. Trust-Related Issues

• Assets owned by a trust versus assets owned by the deceased.
• Loan accounts in favour of or owing by the deceased.
• Deceased as trustee.
• Deceased as beneficiary.
• Trust distributions after death.
• Mistaken inclusion of trust assets in the estate.

1. Foreign Assets

• Identifying offshore assets.
• Foreign bank accounts and investments.
• Foreign immovable property.
• Exchange control considerations.
• Foreign probate or resealing requirements.
• Foreign tax and double taxation issues.
• Reporting foreign assets in the estate.

1. Digital and Crypto Assets

• Identifying digital assets.
• Crypto wallets and exchange accounts.
• Access and security issues.
• Valuation at date of death.
• Realisation or transfer.
• Estate Duty and CGT considerations.
• Practical risks for executors.

1. Retirement Funds and Employee Benefits

• Pension, provident, preservation, and retirement annuity funds.
• Death benefits outside the estate.
• Section 37C-type decision-making by retirement funds.
• Difference between estate assets and nominated beneficiaries.
• Tax certificates and estate reporting.

1. Complex Liabilities

• Mortgage bonds.
• Vehicle finance.
• Suretyships.
• Business debts.
• Personal loans.
• Maintenance claims.
• SARS liabilities.
• Disputed claims.
• Contingent liabilities.
• Claims by surviving spouses or former spouses.

1. Valuation and Record-Keeping

• Date-of-death valuations.
• Business valuations.
• Property valuations.
• Supporting documents.
• Preparing for Master and SARS queries.