Kiwilaw’s online documents to help with estate issues:
Kiwilaw’s Guide to Estate Administration – where there’s a will and a grant of probate v 1.3 (Jan 2023) – 40 pages – FREE to SuperGold card holders who use Kiwilaw’s service to obtain probate – otherwise accessible online, including for download, for AUD45.00 (approx NZD49.00 – charged in AUD because the platform doesn’t allow for NZD orders) – through issuu.com: online publication.
Caveat against issue of grant of administration – online interview and document – downloadable in Word (fee charged: $138 incl GST)
Letter for executor/s to uplift will from lawyer – online interview and document – downloadable in Word (fee charged: $46 incl GST)
Renunciation of probate (by executor named in the will) – online interview and document – downloadable in Word (fee charged: $98.90 incl GST)
Letter to request paternity search from Births, Deaths and Marriages – online interview and document – downloadable in Word (fee charged: $19.55 incl GST; separate fee also payable to Births, Deaths and Marriages)
Practical guidance
Notify organisations of a death (and identify bank accounts) – banks, Kiwisaver, life insurance, local councils, IRD, Work and Income, passports, utility companies, etc – https://mytrove.co.nz/
Archives New Zealand – search for High Court probate files over 25 years old
Birth certificate – order from Births Deaths and Marriages
Death certificate – order from Births Deaths and Marriages
Community Law Centres – Wills and estates – guide to dealing with the deceased’s property
End-of-life services – overview of what needs to be done
Fee-waiver application – if financial hardship means you cannot pay the High Court filing fee for probate or letters of administration
File and Pay – pay the filing fee and/or upload application documents for probate or letters of administration for the High Court
IRD – apply for an IRD number for an estate
JPs (Justices of the Peace) – find a local JP (New Zealand)
Kiwisaver – locate a Kiwisaver provider
Land search – search land titles – check details of land ownership
Maori land online – to search for Maori land interests held by someone who has died
Maori Land Court – information about whanau trusts, and Maori land succession (note – this site misuses the terms ‘testate’ and intestate’ but is otherwise accurate)
Name – change your legal name – change your legal name to match your preferred name, especially if you already use your preferred name for bank accounts, property ownership, family or work, or legal documents.
Will notices – New Zealand Law Society
Disputes about estates
Fairway Resolution Ltd – mediation services, including estates
Useful books to buy or borrow – New Zealand law
Lindsay Breach, Nevill’s Law of Trusts, Wills and Administration, 14th edn (Lexis-Nexis, Wellington, 2023) – includes chapters on role, duties, rights, powers and liabilities of executors and administrators