In applications for letters of administration, you must make 'full enquiries' to try to find a will, even if you believe your loved one did not make a will.
In applications for probate, a 'will enquiry' may be prudent, to check for any later wills
In all cases, you need to search your loved one's home and personal belongings, and ask friends and family, in case there's a will you don't already know about
Ask law firms - they may hold a will you know nothing about
You can ask local law firms yourself, by researching their names and contact details.
You can also ask the local branch of New Zealand Law Society to notify their members – this usually costs $50+GST.
For nationwide coverage, you can book a ‘will notice’ in the weekly LawPoints e-bulletin which goes to all lawyers in New Zealand. This costs $75 +GST.
You must provide your own contact details, for anyone to contact you if they hold a will.
For local branches of NZLS, see here: https://www.lawsociety.org.nz/branches-sections-and-groups/branches/
For more information about booking a will notice in LawPoints, and for the booking form, see here: https://www.lawsociety.org.nz/news/publications/advertise-with-the-new-zealand-law-society-te-kahui-ture-o-aotearoa/will-notices/
Expect problems if a valid will turns up later!
Probably the grant of letters of administration will need to be recalled, and a new application made for probate (or letters of administration with will annexed).
You may be financially liable to beneficiaries who have missed out, if you didn’t bother with a will enquiry before you went ahead as though there was no will.
You may have to repay the estate for the legal fees paid and additional costs incurred by all of this.
If you want to show Kiwilaw as the contact address for any wills that turn up, Kiwilaw can lodge the will notice for you.
We charge an extra $60 for this, in addition to the fee charged by NZLS.
Email us to request this.
You should make a formal 'will enquiry' unless you have genuinely strong reasons not to.
The High Court registrar may insist on a ‘will notice’ before granting letters of administration.
If your loved one left very little (say less than $25,000) and you have other strong reasons for confidence that there is no will, maybe a formal ‘will enquiry’ is not necessary.
If your loved one married shortly before they died, and if they told you they had not make a will, you can be reasonably confident that a valid will does not exist. Even if they did make a will in the years before their marriage, it is invalid unless it was made in contemplation of that marriage.
On the other hand, if your loved one never married, or married many years ago, a ‘will enquiry’ makes sense, even if your loved one told you they had not made a will. There could be a will from 20, 30 or 40 years ago that you know nothing of; and such a will could still be valid. Your loved one may not have wanted to tell you about it, or they may have forgotten about it.
Remember, your loved one could have made a will without telling you or anyone else – anytime between their 18th birthday and their death.
Even if you know your loved one made a will, they could have made a new will without telling you or anyone else. (It’s worth checking, when the only known valid will is many years old.)
It is normal for law firms to hold original wills in their deeds system, to keep them safe.
Wills can also be held by Public Trust, or Perpetual Guardian.
Unless your loved one told people about the will, that will remains a secret, kept confidential, until your loved one’s death. You may be angry that your loved one didn’t tell you about the new will, but that new will is still valid.
That’s why making ‘full’ enquiries almost always includes asking law firms whether they hold a will.
