Pamphlets

The following is an introduction to the content of the Services of the Master of the High Court Booklet (2018)

ADMINISTRATION OF DECEASED ESTATES [p3]
A deceased estate comes into existence when a person dies and leaves property or a document which is a will or is intended as a will. Such an estate must then be administered and distributed in terms of the deceased’s will or failing a valid will, in terms of the Intestate Succession Act, 81 of 1987. The procedure which must be followed to administer a deceased’s estate is prescribed by the Administration of Estates Act, 66 of 1965 (as amended).

CUSTOMARY LAW OF SUCCESION [p7]
Customary Law has been dramatically affected by the Bhe-decision, which changed the way estates of deceased persons will be distributed. It also changed the way the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development will supervise the administration of deceased estates.

DYING WITHOUT A WILL [p10]
FAQ on dying with out a Will.
A deceased estate comes into existence when a person dies leaving property or a document which is a will or purports to be a will. Such estate must then be administered and distributed in terms of the deceased's will or failing a valid will, in terms of the Intestate Succession Act, 81 of 1987. The procedure which must be followed to administer a deceased estate is prescribed by the Administration of Estates Act, 66 of 1965 (as amended).

TRUSTS [p12]
The administration of trusts is governed by the provisionsof the Trust Property Control Act, Act 57 of 1988. There are two types of trusts, e.g. an inter-vivos trust and a testamentary trust: (a) An inter-vivos trust is created between living persons and (b) A testamentary trust derives from a valid will of a deceased.

THE GUARDIAN'S FUND [p14]
It is a fund created to hold and administer funds which are paid to the Master on behalf of various persons known or unknown, for example, minors, persons incapable of managing their own affairs, unborn heirs, missing or absent persons or persons having an interest in the moneys of a usufructuary, fiduciary or fideicommissary nature.

TUTORS AND CURATORS [p16]
A Tutor is a person appointed by the Master or court to administer the property of a minor. The Master appoints curators in the following instances:
• To administer the estates of persons incapable of managing their own affairs. These include: mentally deficient persons, persons who owing to physical infirmity cannot manage their own affairs & persons declared a prodigal by the court;
• To administer the assets of persons and legal entities, attached by the Asset Forfeiture Unit, in terms of a court order; and
• To administer the assets of an absentee (a person whose whereabouts are unknown, and has no legal representative in the Republic).