This session deals with deceased estates where the deceased died without a valid Last Will and Testament, or where the will does not dispose of the whole estate. The session focuses on identifying lawful heirs, calculating intestate shares, dealing with spouses and descendants, and addressing complications involving customary marriages, adopted children, minor heirs, predeceased descendants, and partial intestacy.
Key Topics
When Intestate Succession Applies
No valid will.
Invalid or revoked will.
Partial intestacy.
Failed bequests.
Beneficiary predeceasing the deceased.
Uncertainty or ambiguity in a will.
Residue not properly disposed of.
Legal Framework
Intestate Succession Act.
Role of the Master.
Importance of family information.
Next-of-kin affidavits.
Proof of relationships.
Documentary evidence required.
Identifying Heirs
Surviving spouse.
Descendants.
Parents.
Siblings.
Descendants of predeceased siblings.
More remote blood relatives.
Adopted children.
Children born outside marriage.
Surviving Spouse and Descendants
Where the deceased leaves a spouse but no descendants.
Where the deceased leaves descendants but no spouse.
Where the deceased leaves both spouse and descendants.
Child’s share calculation.
Statutory inheritance of the surviving spouse.
Multiple spouses.
Customary Marriages and Multiple Spouses
Recognition of customary marriages.
Proof of customary marriage.
Multiple surviving spouses.
Calculating the spouses’ shares.
Interaction with descendants.
Practical documentation challenges.
Minor Heirs
Minor children as heirs.
Guardian’s Fund implications.
Natural guardian versus legal representative.
Heirs under curatorship.
Trusts created for minors.
Master’s requirements.
Partial Intestacy
Where part of the estate is governed by a will and part by intestate succession.
