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Unlike the U.K., Jersey has a concept of two Estates, real Estate and personal Estate (also known as Immovable Estate and Movable Estate) and different rules and regulations apply for each Estate.
Many people are confused about their real and personal Estates and whether they must leave their property to one or more relatives.
The most commonly asked questions are: -
What are my real and personal Estates?
A person's real Estate is generally his house, a flying freehold flat or land (but excludes a flat or other realty owned by holding shares in a Company). A person's personal Estate is everything else, including a person's possessions, cash, shares in a Company representing a flat or other property, a car, a boat, furniture, jewellery, stocks and shares e.t.c.
Do I have to make a Will?
In short, NO. Nobody has to make a Will, but it is wise to do so to ensure that the persons you wish to benefit from your Estate after your death, do in fact receive your bequest or gift. In reverse and as is sometimes the case, a Will should be made to exclude a family member who you definitely do not want to have any part of your Estate after you die.
Who will receive my property and possessions if I do not make a Will?
A person's first heirs are his or her spouse (husband or wife) and children. The Wills and Successions (Jersey) Law, 1993 sets out certain minimum entitlement of a spouse and/or child.
If a person dies without having made a Will survived by a spouse but without children, it is the spouse who gets both the real and personal Estates outright.
If a person dies without having made a Will survived by his or her children but not by a spouse, the children share the real and personal Estate in equal shares.
If a person dies without having made a Will survived by both his spouse and children, then:-
Where the person owns realty, the spouse has life enjoyment of the family home and an equal share with the children in all the spouse's real Estate. The children each have an equal share (with the spouse and any brothers and sisters) in all the parent's real estate;
In respect of the personal estate, the spouse has the household effects, the first £30,000.00 of the deceased's personal Estate and one half of the net remainder of the deceased's personal Estate and the children have an equal share between them of the other half of the net remainder of the parent's personal Estate;
Where there are no spouse or children (including grandchildren), the next heir is the person's brothers and sisters (and their heirs) and if there are no brothers and sisters, the next heirs are the person's parents. The list then goes up the family tree to remoter family;
If there is no surviving family, a person's Estate falls to the Crown.
Do I have to leave anything by Will to my family?
The Wills and Successions (Jersey) Law, 1993, provides that if a person has a spouse and children or a spouse or just children, that person's Will may be subject to challenge by the spouse or children if they are not left a minimum part of the Estate as follows: -
Where there is a spouse but no children, the spouse can claim the household effects and two thirds of the rest of the net personal Estate (after debts and expenses are paid);
Where there is a spouse and children, the spouse can claim the household effects and one third of the rest of the net personal Estate and the children may claim one third of the rest of the net personal Estate;
Where there are children but no spouse, the children may claim two thirds of the net personal Estate;
A person may freely give away his or her real estate to anyone whatsoever.
Will my debts be paid after I die?
Yes. It is the duty of the Executor (if there is a Will) and the administrator (if there is not a Will) to get in all the assets and to first pay off the debts before settling any bequests.
What happens if I am divorced? Does my former spouse have any entitlement?
In general, NO. If a Decree Absolute is pronounced by the Court, it terminates any rights of inheritance of a spouse, although an Order of the Court, e.g. for the transfer of a property which has not been made or effected can be enforced against the deceased spouse's Estate.
If I want to give a donation to Charity, do I have to make a Will?
A charity is not recognised as a lawful heir and therefore cannot make a claim in a person's Estate unless a specific gift is made by Will.
Can I make a Worldwide Will?
Yes, however the danger in doing so is that it may not be valid in all parts of the World. In certain parts of the World, a Will must be written up in a specific way and if the Will does not have the specific form, may be open to challenge. Certain countries also have forced inheritance obligations (i.e. obliges a person to give all or part of his Estate to family members) and different Tax structures and therefore, if a person has real or personal Estate in more than one country, he or she should take specific advice from a lawyer in each country and probably make a Will specific for each country.
It must be remembered that a Will often has a clause revoking previous Wills and therefore, if more than one Will is needed for different countries, the maker should ensure that one Will does not revoke the other.
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