Which document would evidence authority for personal representatives to act when executors pre-deceased?

Which document would evidence authority for personal representatives to act when executors pre-deceased?

• A. Grant of Probate
• B. Grant of Administration with the Will annexed
• C. Letters of Administration
• D. The Will

Answer: (B)

When there is a will but the executors named in it have died, someone else must be officially empowered to wind up the estate. The authority to act comes from a court grant. Since there is a will, the appropriate grant is a Grant of Administration with the Will annexed. This grant evidences the substitute personal representative’s authority to collect assets, pay debts, and distribute the estate in accordance with the will and the law. A Grant of Probate wouldn’t apply because there are no surviving executors to prove the will. The Will itself does not by itself confer authority; it only identifies who should act. If there were no will, the correct instrument would be a Grant of Letters of Administration (without the Will annexed).

When there is a will but the executors named in it have died, someone else must be officially empowered to wind up the estate. The authority to act comes from a court grant. Since there is a will, the appropriate grant is a Grant of Administration with the Will annexed. This grant evidences the substitute personal representative’s authority to collect assets, pay debts, and distribute the estate in accordance with the will and the law. A Grant of Probate wouldn’t apply because there are no surviving executors to prove the will. The Will itself does not by itself confer authority; it only identifies who should act. If there were no will, the correct instrument would be a Grant of Letters of Administration (without the Will annexed).