Definitions describe the law of England and Wales. Scotland and Northern Ireland use different rules and some different terms; see wills in Scotland and Northern Ireland. The definitions are general information, not advice about a particular will or estate.
A
Administrator
The person who deals with an estate when there is no executor who can act, most often because there is no will. They are usually the closest relative entitled under probate rules, and the court gives them authority by issuing letters of administration. Source: GOV.UK: if there is not a will, Non-Contentious Probate Rules 1987, r.22. Guide: Executor vs administrator.
Attestation clause
Wording at the end of a will recording that the person making it signed in front of two witnesses, who then signed. The law does not require one, but if it is missing the probate registry asks for evidence that the will was signed properly. Source: Wills Act 1837, s.9, Non-Contentious Probate Rules 1987, r.12. Guide: How to sign and witness a will.
B
Beneficiary
A person or organisation that receives something under a will or under the intestacy rules. Being named as an executor does not make someone a beneficiary unless the will also leaves them something. Source: GOV.UK: if there is a will. Guide: What is a beneficiary?
Bona vacantia
Ownerless property. If someone dies without a will and without any relative entitled under the intestacy rules, the estate passes to the Crown, the Duchy of Lancaster or the Duke of Cornwall. Source: Administration of Estates Act 1925, s.46(1)(vi), GOV.UK: unclaimed estates. Guide: Intestacy rules.
C
Caveat
A notice entered at the probate registry that stops a grant being issued while a dispute is resolved, for example about who should apply or whether a will is valid. It lasts six months at first and can be extended. Source: GOV.UK: challenge a probate application. Guide: Contesting a will.
Charging clause
A clause in a will that lets a professional executor or trustee, such as a solicitor, be paid for their work out of the estate. An executor acting in a personal capacity can recover expenses properly incurred but is not paid for their time. Source: Trustee Act 2000, s.28, s.31. Guide: What is an executor?
Chattels (personal chattels)
Tangible movable property, such as furniture, jewellery, cars and other belongings. The legal definition excludes money and securities, items used solely or mainly for business, and items held solely as an investment. Source: Administration of Estates Act 1925, s.55(1)(x). Guide: Intestacy rules.
Codicil
A document that adds to or changes part of an existing will. It must be signed and witnessed in the same way as a will, and GOV.UK recommends making a new will for major changes. Source: GOV.UK: update your will. Guide: What is a codicil?
Contingent gift
A gift that takes effect only if a condition is met, most often that the beneficiary reaches a stated age such as 21 or 25. A gift with no condition left to meet is said to be vested. Source: Administration of Estates Act 1925, s.47 (children inherit at 18 under intestacy). Guide: Writing a will with children.
D
Deed of variation
A written document in which a beneficiary redirects all or part of an inheritance after a death. If it is made within two years and contains the right statements, inheritance tax and capital gains tax treat the change as if the person who died had made it. Source: Inheritance Tax Act 1984, s.142, Taxation of Chargeable Gains Act 1992, s.62. Guide: Deed of variation.
Disclaimer
Refusing a gift under a will or the intestacy rules. If it is done in writing within two years of the death, inheritance tax applies as if the gift had never been made. Source: Inheritance Tax Act 1984, s.142(1)(b). Guide: Deed of variation.
E
Estate
Everything a person owns when they die, including money, property and possessions. Debts and tax are paid from the estate before beneficiaries receive what is left. Source: GOV.UK: Inheritance Tax gifts, GOV.UK: dealing with the estate. Guide: What is probate?
Executor
A person named in a will to carry it out. They value the estate, apply for probate if it is needed, pay debts and tax, and pass what is left to the beneficiaries. Source: GOV.UK: if there is a will, GOV.UK: dealing with the estate. Guide: What is an executor?
G
Gift over
A backup gift: wording that says who receives a gift if the first beneficiary dies before the person making the will, or does not meet a condition such as reaching a set age. Without one, a failed specific gift normally becomes part of the residue. Guide: What is a beneficiary?
Grant of probate
The document the probate registry issues to the executors named in a will, confirming their legal right to deal with the estate. Each bank or other organisation holding assets decides whether it needs to see one. Source: GOV.UK: applying for probate, Senior Courts Act 1981, s.128. Guide: What is probate?
Grant of representation
The general name for the court document that gives someone authority to deal with an estate: a grant of probate, or letters of administration with or without a will. Public probate records show which type was issued. Source: Senior Courts Act 1981, s.128, GOV.UK: search probate records. Guide: Executor vs administrator.
Guardian
A person appointed to have parental responsibility for a child under 18 after a parent's death. The appointment usually takes effect only when no parent with parental responsibility is still alive. Source: Children Act 1989, s.5. Guide: Appointing a guardian in your will.
I
Inheritance Act claim
A court application by someone who says the will or the intestacy rules do not make reasonable financial provision for them. Spouses, some former spouses, partners who lived with the person as a couple for the two years before the death, children, people treated as a child of the family and people the person was maintaining can apply, normally within six months of the grant. Source: Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, s.1, s.4. Guide: Inheritance Act claims.
Inheritance tax
A tax on the estate of someone who has died. The standard rate is 40%, charged only on the part of the estate above the tax-free threshold. Source: GOV.UK: Inheritance Tax. Guide: Inheritance tax explained.
Intestate (intestacy)
Someone who dies without a valid will dies intestate, and the intestacy rules in the Administration of Estates Act 1925 decide who inherits. The Act also treats a person as intestate for any part of their estate that their will does not deal with. Source: Administration of Estates Act 1925, s.55(1)(vi), s.46. Guide: Intestacy rules.
Issue
All of a person's direct descendants: children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and so on. A gift to someone's issue therefore reaches further than a gift to their children. Source: Wills Act 1837, s.33. Guide: Writing a will with children.
J
Joint tenants
A way of owning property together in which each owner has equal rights to the whole. When one owner dies, the property passes automatically to the surviving owners and cannot be left in a will. Source: GOV.UK: joint property ownership. Guide: Joint tenants vs tenants in common.
L
Lapse
When a gift fails because the beneficiary died before the person who made the will. A gift to the will-maker's child or other descendant who leaves children of their own passes to those children instead, unless the will says otherwise. Source: Wills Act 1837, s.33. Guide: What is a beneficiary?
Lasting power of attorney
A legal document that lets you appoint people to make decisions for you while you are alive, if you cannot make them yourself. It is separate from a will and ends automatically when you die, when your executors take over. Source: GOV.UK: lasting power of attorney, GOV.UK: end a lasting power of attorney. Guide: Lasting power of attorney.
Legacy
A gift in a will, usually of a sum of money or a particular item, as opposed to a share of what is left. The person who receives it is sometimes called a legatee. Guide: What is a beneficiary?
Letter of wishes
A note kept with a will that explains your wishes to your executors, trustees or guardians, for example about personal items or a child's upbringing. It is not legally binding, so anything that must happen belongs in the will itself. Guide: What is a letter of wishes?
Letters of administration
The grant issued to an administrator when there is no valid will, giving them legal authority to deal with the estate. GOV.UK's probate service handles applications for it alongside grants of probate. Source: Administration of Estates Act 1925, s.55(1)(i), GOV.UK: if there is not a will. Guide: Executor vs administrator.
Letters of administration with the will annexed
The grant issued when there is a valid will but no executor able and willing to apply, for example because the only executor has died or given up the role. A beneficiary of the will usually applies. Source: Senior Courts Act 1981, s.128, Non-Contentious Probate Rules 1987, r.20, GOV.UK: if there is a will. Guide: Executor vs administrator.
Life interest
A right to benefit from property for the rest of someone's life, such as living in a home or receiving the income from savings, without owning it outright. When that person dies, the property passes to whoever the will names next. Guide: Trusts in wills.
M
Minor
A person under 18. A minor cannot make a valid will, and under the intestacy rules children inherit only when they reach 18, or marry or form a civil partnership before then. Source: Family Law Reform Act 1969, s.1, Wills Act 1837, s.7, Administration of Estates Act 1925, s.47. Guide: Writing a will with children.
Mirror wills
Two separate wills, usually made by a couple, with matching terms: typically each leaves everything to the other and then to the same people. Matching terms alone do not stop either person changing their own will later. Source: HMRC Inheritance Tax Manual IHTM12063. Guide: Mirror wills.
Mutual wills
Wills that two or more people make under an agreement about how their property will pass, which can bind the survivor after the first death. HMRC's manual says matching wording is not enough on its own: there must be an agreement. Source: HMRC Inheritance Tax Manual IHTM12063. Guide: Mirror wills.
N
Next of kin
A phrase with no general legal meaning for inheritance in England and Wales. Without a will, the intestacy rules decide who inherits, and probate rules decide who can apply to deal with the estate. Source: Administration of Estates Act 1925, s.46, Non-Contentious Probate Rules 1987, r.22. Guide: Next of kin.
Nil-rate band
The part of an estate on which no inheritance tax is charged. It is £325,000, and HMRC's published thresholds keep it at that level until 5 April 2031. Source: GOV.UK: Inheritance Tax thresholds. Guide: Inheritance tax explained.
P
Pecuniary legacy
A gift of money in a will, such as a fixed sum to a named person. In law it also covers annuities and any other general direction to pay money. Source: Administration of Estates Act 1925, s.55(1)(ix). Guide: What is a beneficiary?
Per stirpes
Latin for 'by the stocks', meaning by family branches. If a beneficiary dies first, their children share the portion their parent would have had, instead of each taking an equal share alongside the surviving beneficiaries. Source: Wills Act 1837, s.33(3), Administration of Estates Act 1925, s.47(1)(i). Guide: Writing a will with children.
Personal representative
The legal term covering both executors and administrators: whoever is dealing with the estate of someone who has died. They are legally responsible for the estate until everything has been passed on. Source: Administration of Estates Act 1925, s.55(1)(xi), GOV.UK: dealing with the estate. Guide: Executor vs administrator.
Potentially exempt transfer
A lifetime gift to another person that becomes free of inheritance tax if the giver lives for seven years after making it. If the giver dies within seven years, the gift can be taxed. Source: Inheritance Tax Act 1984, s.3A, GOV.UK: rules on giving gifts. Guide: Gifts and the seven-year rule.
Power reserved
When one of several executors does not apply for probate now but keeps the right to apply later. They must tell the executor who is applying, in writing. Source: GOV.UK: if there is a will. Guide: What is an executor?
Probate
The legal right to deal with someone's property, money and possessions after they die. The word is also used for the process of applying for that right. Source: GOV.UK: applying for probate. Guide: What is probate?
R
Rectification
A court order correcting a will that fails to carry out the will-maker's intentions because of a clerical error or a failure to understand their instructions. An application normally has to be made within six months of the grant. Source: Administration of Justice Act 1982, s.20. Guide: Contesting a will.
Renunciation
Giving up the right to act as an executor permanently, using form PA15. Someone who has already started dealing with the estate should take advice before stepping back. Source: GOV.UK: if there is a will. Guide: What is an executor?
Residence nil-rate band
An extra inheritance tax allowance of up to £175,000 when a home is left to children or grandchildren, which can raise the tax-free threshold to £500,000. It tapers away for estates worth more than £2 million. Source: GOV.UK: passing on a home, GOV.UK: Inheritance Tax thresholds. Guide: Residence nil-rate band.
Residue (residuary estate)
What is left of an estate after debts, funeral and administration costs, tax, and specific gifts and legacies have been paid. A residuary beneficiary receives all or a share of it. Guide: What is a residuary estate?
Revocation
Cancelling a will. A will can be revoked by a later will or codicil, by a signed and witnessed document declaring that intention, by destroying it intending to revoke it, or by the will-maker's marriage or civil partnership. Source: Wills Act 1837, s.20, s.18, s.18B. Guide: Changing your will.
S
Specific gift
A gift of a particular, identified item or asset, such as a named piece of jewellery, a car or a particular bank account, rather than a sum of money or a share of the residue. Guide: What is a beneficiary?
Spouse or civil partner exemption
The inheritance tax rule that there is normally no tax on what you leave to your husband, wife or civil partner. It does not apply to unmarried partners. Source: Inheritance Tax Act 1984, s.18, GOV.UK: Inheritance Tax. Guide: Inheritance tax explained.
Statutory legacy
The fixed sum a surviving husband, wife or civil partner receives under the intestacy rules when the person who died also left children or other descendants: £322,000 for deaths on or after 26 July 2023. They also receive the personal chattels and half of the rest. Source: Administration of Estates Act 1925, s.46, Fixed Net Sum Order 2023. Guide: Intestacy rules.
Survivorship
Three different rules use this word. Jointly owned property held as joint tenants passes to the surviving owner; under the intestacy rules a spouse or civil partner must outlive the person by 28 days to inherit; and where it is uncertain who died first, the younger person is presumed to have survived the elder. Source: GOV.UK: joint property ownership, Administration of Estates Act 1925, s.46(2A), Law of Property Act 1925, s.184. Guide: Intestacy rules.
T
Tenants in common
A way of owning property together in which each owner has a separate share, which can be unequal. Each owner can leave their share in their will. Source: GOV.UK: joint property ownership. Guide: Joint tenants vs tenants in common.
Testamentary capacity
The mental capacity needed to make a valid will. Government guidance describes it as knowing fully what you are doing and being able to express your intentions. Source: GOV.UK: guidance on making wills. Guide: Do I need a solicitor for a will?
Testator
The person who makes a will. 'Testatrix' is an older word for a woman, but the Wills Act 1837 uses 'testator' for everyone. Source: Wills Act 1837, s.1, s.9. Guide: How to make a will.
Transferable nil-rate band
When a husband, wife or civil partner dies without using all of their nil-rate band, the unused percentage can be added to the survivor's own band when the survivor dies. Source: Inheritance Tax Act 1984, s.8A, GOV.UK: Inheritance Tax. Guide: Transferable nil-rate band.
Trust
An arrangement in which trustees hold and manage money or property for beneficiaries. A will can create one, for example to hold money for children until they reach a set age. Source: GOV.UK: trusts and taxes. Guide: Trusts in wills.
Trustee
A person who holds and manages the property in a trust for its beneficiaries. GOV.UK describes trustees as the legal owners of the trust's assets. Source: GOV.UK: trusts and taxes. Guide: Trusts in wills.
U
Undue influence
Pressure that overpowers the will-maker's own wishes, so the will reflects someone else's decisions rather than theirs. A will made under undue influence can be challenged in court. Source: GOV.UK: guidance on making wills. Guide: Contesting a will.
W
Will
A document, signed and witnessed as the Wills Act 1837 requires, that says who receives your estate and who deals with it after your death. In the Act, 'will' also includes a codicil and the appointment of a guardian by will. Source: Wills Act 1837, s.1, s.9. Guide: How to make a will.
Witness
A person who watches the will-maker sign, or acknowledge their signature, and then signs the will in their presence. Both witnesses must be present at the same time, and a gift to a witness or their spouse or civil partner fails. Source: Wills Act 1837, s.9, s.15. Guide: Who can witness a will?
Which terms are most often confused?
These pairs sound alike or overlap, but the difference changes what happens to an estate.
| Terms | The difference |
|---|---|
| Executor and administrator | An executor is chosen in the will. An administrator acts when there is no executor, usually because there is no will. |
| Grant of probate and letters of administration | Probate is issued to executors; letters of administration go to administrators. The court fee is the same. |
| Mirror wills and mutual wills | Mirror wills can each be changed later. Mutual wills rest on an agreement that can bind the survivor. |
| Joint tenants and tenants in common | A joint tenant's interest passes to the other owners automatically. A tenant in common can leave their share by will. |
| Codicil and letter of wishes | A codicil changes the will and must be witnessed. A letter of wishes guides executors but is not binding. |
| Specific gift, pecuniary legacy and residue | An item, a sum of money, and whatever is left after debts and other gifts. |
For the practical difference between the two roles that deal with an estate, read executor vs administrator. For common beliefs about wills that are wrong in law, see will and inheritance myths.
Sources
- Wills Act 1837: sections 1, 7, 9, 15, 18, 18B, 20 and 33
- Administration of Estates Act 1925: sections 46, 47 and 55
- Non-Contentious Probate Rules 1987: rules 12, 20 and 22
- Senior Courts Act 1981, section 128
- Inheritance Tax Act 1984: sections 3A, 8A, 18 and 142; Taxation of Chargeable Gains Act 1992, section 62
- Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975: sections 1 and 4
- Children Act 1989, section 5; Family Law Reform Act 1969, section 1
- Trustee Act 2000: sections 28 and 31; Administration of Justice Act 1982, section 20; Law of Property Act 1925, section 184
- Administration of Estates Act 1925 (Fixed Net Sum) Order 2023
- GOV.UK: applying for probate, dealing with the estate, search probate records, challenge a probate application and unclaimed estates
- GOV.UK: update your will, guidance on making wills using video-conferencing, joint property ownership, trusts and taxes and lasting power of attorney
- GOV.UK: Inheritance Tax, gifts, passing on a home and thresholds; HMRC IHTM12063
Sources checked 22 October 2026.