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What does probate mean and what exactly does 'issue' mean?
What does probate mean and what exactly does 'issue' mean? A relative recently died and left a bequest in their will to my parents' 'issue'. Does this bequest go to the children of that 'issue', in this instance my brother and I? If my brother has children and I have children and those children have children - does the bequest in this instance mean all children or just me and my brother? Where and how can we get to see the Will?
Probate is a process which occurs when somebody dies. Depending on the nature of their assets and their value, a document called a Grant of Probate is required from the Court so that the Executors can deal with the assets in the estate. The Executors are the person or people nominated in the Will to deal with the administration. The Will has to be sent to Court in order for the Grant to be issued: it is at that point that the Will becomes a public document and a copy of it can be purchased from the Probate Registry for a nominal sum. It can take quite a while for an Executor to be in a position where they are ready to apply for Probate and therefore there is no point in applying for a copy too soon.
'Issue' means children of a beneficiary or, if those children have died leaving children, then grandchildren and so on. From what you say, and depending on the wording of the Will, it would seem as if you and your brother share the legacy; if you have any siblings which have died then, if they had children, those children would stand in their parents' shoes and share their legacy. You are entitled to see the clause of the Will which relates to the legacy.
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