[Revised 1 February, 1980]

An Act to make new provision for the resealing in ________ of probates and letters of administration and instruments having similar effect granted outside ________; to repeal the [Probates (Resealing) Act] and for matters incidental thereto.

Short title

1. This Act may be cited as Probates and Letters of Administration (Resealing) Act, 198-.

Interpretation

2.(1) For the purpose of this Act, the expression -

“court” includes any competent authority, by whatever name it is designated, having jurisdiction to make a grant of administration;

“grant of administration” means a probate or letters of administration or any instrument having, within the jurisdiction where it was made, the effect of appointing or authorising a person (in this Act referred to as “the grantee”) to collect and administer any part of the estate of a deceased person and otherwise having in that jurisdiction an effect equivalent to that given, under the law of ________, to a probate or letters of administration;

“personal representative” means the executor, original or by representation, or administrator for the time being, of a deceased person and includes any public official or any corporation named in the probate or letters of administration as executor or administrator as the case may be;

[“Registrar” means the Registrar of the Supreme Court;]

“reseal” means reseal with the seal of the Supreme Court.

(3) This Act shall apply in relation to grants of administration granted before or after the passing of this Act.

Applications for resealing

3.(1) Where a grant of probate or letters of administration of the estate of any deceased person has been made by a court in any part of the Commonwealth or in any other country, an application may be made under this section for the resealing of the grant of administration.

(2) An application under this section shall be made to the Registrar and may be made by -

(a) a personal representative or the grantee, as the case may be; or

(b) a person authorised by power of attorney given by any such personal representative or grantee; or

(c) a legal practitioner registered in ________ acting on behalf of any such personal representative or grantee or of a person referred to in paragraph (b).

(a) gives notice that the person named in the advertisement intends to make an application under this section;

(b) states the name and the last address of the deceased person;

(c) requires any person wishing to oppose the resealing of the probate or letters of administration to lodge a caveat with the Registrar by a date specified in the advertisement which shall be a date not less than twenty-one days after the date of the publication of the advertisement.

(a) the grant of administration or an exemplification thereof or a duplicate thereof sealed with the seal of the court by which the grant was made or a copy of any of the foregoing certified as a correct copy by or under the authority of that court;

(b) where the document produced under paragraph (a) does not include a copy of the will, a copy of the will, verified by or under the authority of that court;

(c) an affidavit stating that an advertisement has been duly published pursuant to subsection (3);

(d) where the applicant is a person referred to in subsection (2)(b), the power of attorney authorising him to make the application and an affidavit stating that the power has not been revoked;

(e) [an Inland Revenue certificate affidavit] as if the application were one for the making of a grant of administration by the Supreme Court; and

(f) such evidence, if any, as the Registrar thinks fit as to the domicile of the deceased person,

and shall deposit with the Registrar a copy of the grant of administration.

4.(1) Any person who wishes to oppose the resealing of a grant of administration shall, by the date specified in the advertisement published pursuant to section 3(3), lodge a caveat against the sealing.

(2) A caveat under subsection (1) shall have the same effect and shall be dealt with in the same manner as if it were a caveat against the making of a grant of probate or letters of administration by the Supreme Court.

(3) The Registrar shall not, without an order of the Supreme Court, proceed with an application under section 3 if a caveat has been lodged under this section.

Resealing of grants of administration

5.(1) Subject to this section, where an application has been duly made under section 3 and the date specified in the advertisement published pursuant to section 3(3) has passed and no caveat has been lodged under section 4 or any caveat so lodged has not been sustained, the Registrar may, if he is satisfied that -

(a) such estate duties, if any, have been paid as would have been payable if the grant of administration had been made by the Supreme Court;

(b) security has been given in a sum sufficient in amount to cover the property in ________ to which the grant of administration relates and in relation to which the deceased died intestate,

cause the grant of administration to be resealed.

(3) Where it appears that a deceased person was not, at the time of his death, domiciled within the jurisdiction of the court by which the grant was made, probate or letters of administration in respect of his estate may not be resealed, unless the grant is such as the Supreme Court would have had jurisdiction to make.

(4) The Registrar may, if he thinks fit, on the application of any creditor require, before resealing, that adequate security be given for the payment of debts or claims due from the estate to creditors residing in ________.

(5) The Registrar -

(a) may, if he thinks fit, at any time before resealing refer an application under section 3 to the Supreme Court; and

(b) shall make such a reference if so requested in writing by the applicant at any time before resealing or within twenty-one days after he has refused to reseal,

and where an application is so referred, the grant of administration may not be resealed except in accordance with an order of the Supreme Court.

6.(1) A grant of administration resealed under section 5(1) shall have like force and effect and the same operation in ________, and such part of his estate as is in ________ shall be subject to the same liabilities and obligations, as if the probate or letters of administration had been granted by the Supreme Court.

(2) Without prejudice to subsection (1), the personal representative or grantee, where the application is made by him or is made under section 3(2)(c) on his behalf or the person duly authorised under section 3(2)(b), where the application is made by him or is made under section 3(2)(c) on his behalf, shall, after the resealing, be deemed to be, for all purposes, the personal representative of the deceased person in respect of such of his estate as is in ________, and, subject to section 7, shall perform the same duties and be subject to the same liabilities as if he was personal representative under a probate or letters of administration granted by the Supreme Court.

Duties of person authorised by personal representative, etc

7.(1) A person duly authorised under section 3(2)(b) who is deemed to be a personal representative by virtue of section 6(2) shall, after satisfying or providing for the debts or claims due from the estate of all persons residing in ________ or of whose debts or claims he has had notice, pay over or transfer the balance of the estate in ________ to the personal representative named in the grant or the grantee, as the case may be or as such personal representative or grantee may, by power of attorney, direct.

(2) Any such person referred to in subsection (1) shall duly account to the personal representative or grantee, as the case may be, for his administration of the estate in ________.

Rules of court

8. Rules of court may be made for regulating the practice and procedure, including fees and costs, on or incidental to an application under this Act for resealing a grant of administration.

Repeals

9. The [Probates (Resealing) Act] is hereby repealed.

Commencement

10. This Act shall come into force on such date as the [Head of State] shall, by order, designate.