The Administration of Estates Act 1925 is an Act passed in 1925 by the
British Parliament
The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative suprem ...
that consolidated, reformed, and simplified the rules relating to the
administration of estates in England and Wales.
Principal reforms
All authority that a
personal representative
In common law jurisdictions, a personal representative or legal personal representative is a person appointed by a court to administer the estate of another person. If the estate being administered is that of a deceased person, the personal repres ...
had with respect to
chattels real (such as
fixtures) was extended to cover any matter dealing with
real estate
Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this (also) an item of real property, (more general ...
as well.
With respect to the property of any estate (excepting
entailed interests), there were abolished:
:* all existing rules of descent (whether arising from the common law, custom,
gavelkind
Gavelkind () was a system of land tenure chiefly associated with the Celtic law in Ireland and Wales and with the legal traditions of the English county of Kent.
The word may have originated from the Old Irish phrases ''Gabhaltas-cinne'' or ...
,
Borough English or otherwise)
:*
tenancy by the curtesy and any other estate a husband may have where his wife dies intestate
:*
dower
Dower is a provision accorded traditionally by a husband or his family, to a wife for her support should she become widowed. It was settled on the bride (being gifted into trust) by agreement at the time of the wedding, or as provided by law. ...
,
freebench and any other estate a wife may have where her husband dies intestate
:*
escheat
Escheat is a common law doctrine that transfers the real property of a person who has died without heirs to the crown or state. It serves to ensure that property is not left in "limbo" without recognized ownership. It originally applied to a ...
to the Crown, the
Duchy of Lancaster
The Duchy of Lancaster is the private estate of the British sovereign as Duke of Lancaster. The principal purpose of the estate is to provide a source of independent income to the sovereign. The estate consists of a portfolio of lands, properti ...
, the
Duchy of Cornwall, or to a
mesne lord
A mesne lord () was a lord in the feudal system who had vassals who held land from him, but who was himself the vassal of a higher lord. Owing to '' Quia Emptores'', the concept of a mesne lordship technically still exists today: the partitioni ...
The rules governing the distribution of intestate estates were replaced by a single statutory framework.
[Act, s. 46]
Later significant amendments
The Act has been subsequently amended in certain respects by the following:
:*
Intestates’ Estates Act 1952
:*
Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975
The Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 is an Act of the United Kingdom Parliament concerning inheritance in England and Wales. It has been amended, for example to take into account civil partnerships.
Contents
This Act m ...
:*
:*
Inheritance and Trustees' Powers Act 2014
Inheritance is the practice of receiving private property, titles, debts, entitlements, privileges, rights, and obligations upon the death of an individual. The rules of inheritance differ among societies and have changed over time. Officially ...
In fiction
The Act plays a major role (as the 'Property Act') in the 1927
mystery novel
Mystery is a fiction genre where the nature of an event, usually a murder or other crime, remains mysterious until the end of the story. Often within a closed circle of suspects, each suspect is usually provided with a credible motive and a re ...
''
Unnatural Death
In many legal jurisdictions, the manner of death is a determination, typically made by the coroner, medical examiner, police, or similar officials, and recorded as a vital statistic. Within the United States and the United Kingdom, a distinct ...
'' by
Dorothy L. Sayers
Dorothy Leigh Sayers (; 13 June 1893 – 17 December 1957) was an English crime writer and poet. She was also a student of classical and modern languages.
She is best known for her mysteries, a series of novels and short stories set between th ...
, its commencement with respect to intestate estates providing the motive for a seemingly motiveless murder which
Lord Peter Wimsey
Lord Peter Death Bredon Wimsey (later 17th Duke of Denver) is the fictional protagonist in a series of detective novels and short stories by Dorothy L. Sayers (and their continuation by Jill Paton Walsh). A dilettante who solves mysteries fo ...
must solve.
See also
*
Administration of an estate on death
*
Ultimogeniture
Ultimogeniture, also known as postremogeniture or junior right, is the tradition of inheritance by the last-born of a privileged position in a parent's wealth or office. The tradition has been far rarer historically than primogeniture (sole inh ...
References
United Kingdom Acts of Parliament 1925
{{UK-statute-stub