Q. My brother passed away last year. He was unmarried and had no children. His job took him all around the world – the UK, the States, bits of New Zealand and Asia. He’d stay in one place for a few years and move on. He generally bought small apartments where he was working and rented them out when he left. I know he sold one or two a few years ago, but also had a good income from other apartments. He retired early and was living off his rental income and savings at home in Ireland. I don’t know if he had a will in Ireland, and no idea where to start. We would have been quite close, and I’d be the natural person to look after his affairs.
Dear Reader,
This is a complicated and potentially open-ended question. Firstly, you should try and gather your brother’s papers if you have access to his home. Those papers might include a copy of his wills – if he had ever made one. If he owned property in Ireland, the solicitor he used to purchase the property might hold a will.
If he did not have a will in Ireland, his estate would be distributed via intestacy. This would mean that your parents, if they are still alive, would be first entitled to take out the Grant of Administration. If they have passed, his siblings would be entitled to take out the Grant, and his Irish estate would be divided equally between any living siblings.
However, from here things get more complicated. Each foreign jurisdiction would have their own rules as regards whether an Irish will or Grant of Administration or Probate would be acceptable. In a broad sense, countries which share a Common Law system (i.e. the UK, New Zealand, Australia etc.) would have relatively similar procedures in place. New Zealand, for example, has a relatively straightforward “re-sealing” procedure. The UK has a more complicated system, and a full UK Grant of Probate/Administration would be required. The USA has different rules depending on which State the property was held in.
It is also possible that your brother made wills, or similar documents, in those other jurisdictions, or there may be particular local laws as regards inheritance. You might need to retain a lawyer in each different jurisdiction to advise you as to the best way forward.
Presumably your brother would have retained lawyers to assist him in the purchasing of the properties and those firms may be a good first port of call. Your solicitor will be able to guide you through the various steps that you might need to take.
Lastly, you should take advice as regards any potential taxation issues, including in any such jurisdiction.