How do I obtain Confirmation in Scotland?

When you need to deal with the estate of someone who has died in Scotland, you invariably need to obtain Confirmation. Confirmation is the Scottish equivalent of Probate in England. Without obtaining Confirmation, it is not usually possible to ingather and distribute the proceeds of the estate. Before going into detail about how you obtain Confirmation in Scotland, let us look at what Confirmation is.

What is Confirmation?

Confirmation is a document issued by the sheriff court to the executor of an estate, authorising the executor to ingather and distribute the estate. It also contains a complete list of all property, assets, investments, and cash in the estate as well as the debts of the estate. Confirmation will be needed for any estate of more than a nominal value whether the deceased made a Will or died without one. It is a certificate of authority that debtors of the estate can rely on when they release money due to the estate to you as the executor.

What must I do before applying for Confirmation?

Before you can apply for Confirmation, you need to have authority to act as executor. If the deceased made a Will naming you as executor, you can immediately begin gathering the information necessary to apply for Confirmation.

However, if the deceased died intestate (without making a Will), you need to prepare and lodge a Petition in the sheriff court to appoint you as executor. You must qualify to be the executor of the estate. This is usually through your relationship with the deceased, for example, spouse or civil partner or child or other relation. Once your Petition has been granted, you need to arrange a Bond of Caution. A Bond of Caution is an insurance policy to protect the beneficiaries in the estate in case of fraudulent distribution.

How do I obtain Confirmation?

Now that you have authority to act as executor, you can now go ahead with the administration of the estate.

To wind up an estate, you much gather as much information as possible. This information consists of all property, assets, investments, and cash held or due to the deceased at the time of their death. You also need to list all debts due by the estate to others.

When you have all the necessary information, you must complete an Inventory of Estate. This document lists all the information you have amassed. You then need to calculate the net value of the estate.

How long will it take to gather the information?

You should be aware that it might take some time to obtain the information you are looking for. Be prepared to send reminders to those who do not respond to your enquiry at first time of asking. In addition, you must have property and assets valued. You should not “guess” at the value of any of the assets of the estate.

This means you need a surveyor to value any property, stockbrokers to value any stocks or shares and jewellers or auctioneers to value jewellery, antiques or works of art. Again, arranging all of this can take time.

Lodging the Inventory of Estate with the sheriff court

When the inventory has been completed, you need to sign a declaration before the Inventory can be presented to the sheriff clerk. You then send the inventory to the sheriff clerk along with the Will (or an extract of the Will) of the deceased or, if the deceased died without a Will, the extract decree of your appointment as executor and the Bond of Caution.

The sheriff clerk will check the inventory and if properly completed and error free, will issue Confirmation in favour of the executor. If there are any errors, the sheriff clerk will return the inventory to you for correction.

When Confirmation has been granted, you can then use it to ingather the estate and distribute it to the beneficiaries.

Obtaining confirmation can be daunting for most people. Our solicitors deal with many estates every year and are experienced in applying for Confirmation for clients. If you need any help with the administration of an estate or if you have any questions about Confirmation in Scotland, please contact us.