A Next of Kin is not a beneficiary to a Deceased’s Estate but only an emergency contact person. However, a Next of Kin can be a beneficiary where the directives in the Will permit the individual to benefit from the Estate.

The appointment of your Executors/Trustees is extremely important as they will be responsible for gathering, distributing, and investing your assets, paying the Estate Duty to the State and reporting to your beneficiaries. We recommend you appoint an Institutional Executor/Trustee such as FBNQuest Trustees over natural persons (individuals) because of the dedication, time, skill, commitment, transparency, accountability, and expertise required.

No. The law does not permit the beneficiary to also be a witness to the Will. The beneficiary would have to forfeit his/her bequest.

Yes, so far as the Executor is not a beneficiary to the Will.

It is advisable not to include burial instructions in a Will as the Will is often not read until the Deceased has been buried. We advise that a separate document from the Will detailing the final burial instructions is drafted and we are available to assist you with the drafting of both documents.

Probate usually refers to the legal process whereby the Deceased's assets are collected and following various legal and fiscal steps and processes, eventually distributed to the beneficiaries of the Estate.

This grant is the authority the Executors/Trustees of the Estate have to deal with the assets of the Estate in accordance with the directives in the Will. Unless you have a fairly simple Estate, your Executors may be forced to hire other professionals due to the time and effort required in obtaining same. Therefore, we usually advise the initial appointment of an Institutional Trustee such as FBNQuest Trustees.

Estate Duty will be paid by the Executor/Trustee to the State, currently 10% of the gross value of the assets in the Estate of the Deceased.

The Executors named in the Will have a duty to protect the assets under the Estate, for anyone claiming rights under the Will in a law Court, the Executors shall represent/defend the Estate of the deceased; where it is confirmed that the Testator/Testatrix was of a sound mind and was not under any undue influence by anyone and the court considering other factors/reasons that might have been alleged by the complainant and found frivolous, any challenge will not be successful.

A Will written in Nigeria including assets owned anywhere in the world is valid. However, to enable the Executors access to the properties offshore, when the Grant of Probate is obtained in Nigeria, a resealing process will be undertaken in other jurisdictions. So, offshore assets can be included in the Will written in Nigeria and the Executors will have the power to deal with the assets in line with the directives in the Will when the resealing process is completed.

Once you attain the age of majority and can enter into a contract, you can make a Will. It is advisable to make a Simple Will or any other type of Will once you are an adult and have possessions or things that you own.