1. If the testator publicized the existence of his Will during his lifetime but the Will cannot be found after he died, can the Letters of Administration be applied for?

1. If the testator publicized the existence of his Will during his lifetime but the Will cannot be found after he died, can the Letters of Administration be applied for?

Letters of administration of the estate of a deceased person are granted where the deceased died wholly intestate.

When an applicant applies for Letters of Administration, he is required to prove intestacy.  If the testator has publicized the existence of his Will during his lifetime, the applicant may not be able to swear to the intestacy of the deceased.

Instead, he may apply for an order admitting proof of other evidence of its contents can be made to the Registrar under r.53 of Non-Contentious Probate Rules (Cap. 10A). The Court may direct that the application be made on summons to the Registrar or judge or to the court on motion: r.60 of Non-Contentious Probate Rules (Cap. 10A).

The party propounding the will bears the burden to rebut the default presumption that the will was revoked by destruction by the deceased in his lifetime.

The grant made is limited until the original or a more authentic copy is proved.